Melting Ice
by JadOo
Summary: There's a new girl in school...who looks alot like...Rukawa? OKAY, here's the Valentine's Special (So I know Valentine's is over, stop glaring at me *cowers*) *Part III up*
1. Mirror Image

Melting Ice ****

Melting Ice

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Chapter 1: Mirror image

Disclaimer: The following characters of Slam Dunk do not belong to me. 

Hallo….this is my very first Slamdunk fic…I'm not very familiar with the characters just yet as I'm pretty new. But I just can't help writing about Rukawa-kun ^_^.

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Here he was yet again.

Year 1 Class 10, Shohoku high School.

Every day was the same. Basketball practices commenced almost everyday. He slept in class just about every minute. Heck, he even came to school riding a bike while half-asleep sometimes.

Rukawa was bored, and he knew it. 

He enjoyed using those smart remarks of his to annoy Sakuragi everyday. And he enjoyed the practices and upcoming games.

But he was bored.

Maybe I should try, for once, to **actually **pay attention in class today. School rule's it that you've gotta pass the class first. And considering that I haven't been paying attention for the past…what, three months? I might as well start now and buck up…

Fat hope.

He knew there was no way he wouldn't sleep in class. No way that he wouldn't live up to his law of 'As long as you disturb my sleep, it will not go unnoticed'. Look at the number of broken alarm clocks in his house for example.

Walking through the same halls and to his classroom, he heard the everyday sounds of girls chattering, about him. He used to give them a weird look and then their faces would start to turn red and their chattering louder. He didn't exactly like the buzzing, so he avoided eye contact and gave that expressionless face to everyone.

He took his time and long strides over to the very last seat on the right hand side of the room. Some of his classmates were already there and were chitchatting amongst themselves. Most of the girls gawked at him and he knew that in about fifteen minutes time, a mob of girls was going to come in and squeal at the sight of him.

So he decided to sleep. As he always did and had.

So much so for being bored…

His table looked comfortable enough, but what gave him discomfort was the table adjoined to its left. Bothering to look around, he found that all around the class, such had taken place. Oh heck He stretched out his hand in an attempt to move that table away, but...

"I suggest you don't do that, Rukawa-san. If you do that, you're gonna get in big trouble."

He spun around and saw that dreaded math teacher of his. He really didn't want to talk to that ahou right now, so he shot a glare and quietly sat down at his place. 

As soon as he had settled down and prepared for a snooze, the Rukawa-fanclub came marching in and began swooning over the basketball star. Arghh…I'm seriously gonna get violent if they don't shut up soon…

Rukawa couldn't sleep. 

Not with those nutty fangirls staring at him and 'oohing' over him as if he was some kind of rare museum specimen.

He felt most relieved when the bell had rung. Everyone had already settled down, and the seat beside him was still empty as it previously was. What's the point of putting this blasted thing here anyway?

The teacher cleared her throat. "Class, today we are going to have a new student joining us." 

Facing the open door, she gestured for someone to come in. "Everyone, this is Watanabe Yukiko."

The new student gave a low bow and regained her composure not too soon afterwards. She grinned at her classmates. "Very pleased to meet you all."

The moment she had done so, the class had gone hush.

Whispers of "Kawaii" escaped from a few.

This girl had a small, petite figure and porcelain white skin. Her jet-black hair was tied in a neat ponytail that fell to her shoulder blades leaving a thin layer of fringe, which ended just above her eyes, to cover her forehead. She had clear blue aquamarine eyes and a bright smile, one that could light up anyone's day. She wore no make up, only because she didn't need it.

The teacher looked kindly at this girl. "I believe we are also very pleased to meet you, Watanabe-san. You will be seated beside Rukawa-san there." 

She turned to the boy. "RUKAWA KAEDE!"

It jolted him from his slumped position. Bleary eyed, he looked up and saw the new student. It was then did he realise who was going to sit beside him. Of all things, they put a girl there… She walked over to the empty space and bowed to Rukawa. "Ohayo, Rukawa Kaede-kun. Watashiwa Watanabe Yukiko desu."

Then she turned to face the class. "Please, just call me Yukiko." After which, she sat down wordlessly.

"Talks too much," Rukawa muttered as he readied himself to fall asleep again. But before that, he wanted to know why the tables were arranged in this weird manner, and why he had to **actually** sit next to someone. A girl to be precise.

So he did the most unnatural thing in the world. He raised his hand and asked a question. "Why are our tables joined?"

This shocked the teacher, but she beamed at him soon after. "Rukawa-san, the school is trying out this experiment to see whether you students will fare better alone in class or with a partner."

"Oh, I see." And it just **had** to be a girl…

He fell back into his slumber, blocking out the other sounds and listening only for the recess bell to ring.

Soft buzzing spread through the corridor as the latest gossip was being told.

"NANI? You mean Rukawa-kun has an exact female replica…who sits next to him?!" Haruko was shocked at this piece of information her friends had given her. She couldn't believe it for even a second, until she heard the moans of the Rukawa's three most faithful fangirls. 

Most of the girls were crowded at the front and back door of Year 1 Class 10, peeping in to see whom it was that everyone else talked about. Even the boys were curious. If Rukawa was already so handsome, his female version must be gorgeous.

There he was, slumped on his table, asleep as usual. And there **she** was, sitting right next to him and doing her work diligently, obviously not bothered by the boy or why he was **that** tired.

She was beautiful.

He was handsome.

No doubt, she would have a fan club just like he did in a short time. 

The soft humming amongst the girls grew louder and louder as the boys began to catcall, some at the new girl, and some at Rukawa.

She turned her head sharply to those at the back door. "Minna-san, could you all lower your volume. Kaede-kun here is trying to get some sleep you know."

"KA-KAEDE-KUN? DID YOU JUST CALL HIM THAT?" The fangirls were shocked, raged, displeased. How could one who didn't even know the star for a single day begin to call him by his first name already?

"Ano…is there something wrong with that?"

"YOU'RE DARN RIGHT THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG WITH THAT. HOW CAN YOU…" 

The loud voice fell as the pale boy's head jerked up. He mustered his fiercest glare and said the all so familiar line. "I don't care who you are. But as long as you disturb my sleep, you shall pay."

He stood up to his full length and towered over the rest, including the bewildered girl who was still seated. He trudged up to the mob of students and aimed his fists. It was then that a tugging at his shirtsleeve stopped him.

It was her. "Kaede-kun, just what are you doing?"

He cast his cold blue eyes upon her. "Did you just call me what I heard you call me?"

"Sumimasen. Demo, is there something wrong with it?"

"Aa." He wanted to fling her off his arm and proceed with bashing up the rest. He wanted to hit her, too, for having the nerve to call him without formality. 

But he didn't.

He couldn't.

He didn't have the heart to hurt a smaller girl just because she didn't know that what she had done wronged him. Just because she didn't want anyone to get hurt. Just because she was new to this. 

She had already let go of his shirtsleeve by then and still had a confused look. The doorways had already begun to clear. He grabbed his bento and faced Yukiko. "Don't use my first name to call me ever again without my permission." Then he left the class for the roof, where he spent his recesses sleeping. 

Naomi patted her on the shoulder. "Don't be surprised, Yukiko-chan, Rukawa-kun's just like that. He's cold."

The girl nodded her head and took out her bento, taking in small portions as she completed her work.

Akagi sighed as he stepped into the principal's office yet again. He knew it was going to be something about one of the basketball members. Maybe about Sakuragi getting into yet another fight, or Rukawa falling asleep in class for the umpteenth time.

This was getting ridiculous.

He strolled in and sat down in the chair across the principal – a grey-haired man with deep wrinkles on his forehead. He was obviously worried and exhausted. His pupils were not as hardworking as they were concerned about being the top judo team or top basketball team. They never thought about being a top school.

A silence settled between them. 

No one said a word.

It prolonged for a few minutes, until Akagi let out a heavy sigh.

"It's about one of the team members again, isn't it, Matsushita-sensei?"

"Hai Akagi. Demo, it isn't only about him…"

"Huh?"

"Rukawa has being falling asleep in class ever since the first day of school. And now that the exams are nearing, we'll need him to buck up or fall out of the team."

"What?!"

"Akagi, I'm sure that you know very well about the school rules and passing the class first."

"Hai, demo…"

"So now, after a meeting with his teachers, we have agreed to give him remedial classes on what he has missed for the past few months."

"I see…"

"But we're afraid that he'll fall asleep yet again, that is why we have adjoined the tables, in hopes of having someone to be able to wake him up during lessons."

"Oh…"

"A new student signed up just last Sunday and we have placed her in Rukawa class and specifically next to him."

"HER?"

"Hai. We wanted to place a boy there, demo it was a girl that joined, not a boy."

"What's her name?"

"Watanabe Yukiko. I'm sure you have heard of her."

"The girl who looks like Rukawa's twin."

"Hai. The teachers have observed her a noticed that she isn't like the rest of the school's female population. She isn't head over heels about Rukawa and doesn't seem very intrigued about his looks."

"Probably because she looks like him…" 

"Watanabe is a very studious girl who has gotten the highest score ever for the entrance exams into this school."

"If she does so well, why isn't she in a top school?"

"Her family just moved here from another region due to her father's job transfer. Since Shohoku High is nearest to home, she joined this school."

"I see…"

"So what we need you to do is tell Rukawa about this make up lessons and how he will be turning up for it with Watanabe and Sakuragi. Also, remind both of them that they will be kicked out of the team if they don't start working harder."

"SAKURAGI? What on earth is **that** baka doing there?"

"Sakuragi has missed some very important classes and has been found constantly doodling over his books and daydreaming."

"Yare yare…I have to counsel both two dopes?"

"Aa. That's all you need to do. Basketball practices will commence as usual, and by the end of three weeks, we will tell you how well both have fared."

"Okay then."

"Arigato Akagi. You may leave now."

"Hai."

He stood up and left the room. This was such an awkward idea…

Yukiko clutched her books tightly as she opened the door to the rooftop.

Those guys had been bothering her again. She wondered why this happened everywhere she went. She had transferred five times already. Each in a single week or two.

That's why she came to the rooftop. Naomi had told her that half the entire male population refused to head up to the rooftop during recess. She didn't ask why though. She just wanted a safe refuge where it was quiet and peaceful.

Then she saw it. 

She saw why everyone else probably didn't come up. But she didn't know why.

There in the middle of the wide rooftop, was a sleeping figure. This boy looked like a Year 3 and was very fair. It seemed rather strange for one who spent so much time in the sun to be this colourless. But then again, she was fair-skinned too even though she spent an enormous amount of time under the blazing sun. 

She walked past the asleep being and towards the other end of the rooftop. There, she sat leaned against the wall and began reading her novel, glancing at her watch every two minutes or so as she didn't want to be late for class. 

She didn't stop until it was about five minutes left before the bell rang. So she marked her page and closed her book. Straightening up after doing so, she noticed that the boy was still sleeping. She didn't like the idea of waking up such a tired person, but after all, how can you miss a class?

As she walked towards the asleep one, she noticed an untouched bento lying beside him. And she recognised it.

It was the bento, which Rukawa had taken just before he left the classroom.

"Did you just call me what I heard you call me?" __

"Don't use my first name to call me ever again without my permission." 

Why is he so cold anyway?

"I don't care who you are. But as long as you disturb my sleep, you shall pay."

Then she wondered if she should wake him up.

But it's Math next. You can't miss Math lessons…

So she gently prodded him awake, and called him as she did so. "Rukawa-kun. Rukawa-kun, wake up. Class starts in about three minutes. Rukawa-kun, wake…"

His eyelids opened suddenly and startled her.

He was pissed.

It was the second time that day that his sleep had been disturbed. 

He sat up and turned to the person who had done so, ready to punch.

Then he stopped.

And blinked.

She had disturbed his sleep yet again. 

First time was when she got the fangirls angry. 

Now she had done so personally.

He noticed his uneaten bento and gobbled it down.

She just watched, still in shock.

Only when he had gotten up to leave did she snap back into reality.

"Ne, Rukawa-kun," she began as she got up as well and smoothen her skirt, "are you so tired that you sleep all the while in school?"

"…"

He turned to look at her before heading towards the door.

She followed persistently. And even as they descended the steps, she talked still.

"What do you do that causes you to be so tired? I've never met anyone who's like that…"

"Do you know how big a wrong it is to wake me up?" He turned to her and gave her a pissed-off look.

"Ah…iie…go-gomen ne, I thought it was better if I woke you up since the bell was about to…"

*RIIING*

"…ring." She laughed after doing so and grinned at him. "Funny things do happen, don't they, Rukawa-kun?"

"Aa."

Her constant chatter didn't stop even as they were walking through the hallways to class. It was kind of one-sided, except that he gave short responses to her words. Rukawa hadn't tried to get her off his back. Well, he had, but she wasn't reacting to it as expected.

She's different from the rest…

Many who passed stared daggers at the pair - the boys at Rukawa (some at Yukiko), the girls at Yukiko.

And when they had reached the classroom, and even when lessons were going on, Rukawa didn't sleep. It was impossible to do so when this girl and how she reacted to things was so intriguing.

And, for once in his entire Shohoku life, he paid attention to the lessons…and talked to a girl his age. 

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How was it?

If you all wanna know why there's no Sakuragi point of views, they are not out yet.

©Copyrighted by JadOo Enterprises 2001 


	2. Basketball

Melting Ice ****

Melting Ice

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Chapter two: Basketball

Disclaimer: All characters from Slam Dunk do not belong to me. Those that do not come from Slam Dunk **obviously** are mine.

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"RUKAWA! RUKAWA!" 

They were at it again. Interrupting basketball practices and annoying him to death.

But what disturbed Sakuragi most was that Haruko was amongst them. Not so crazed, but all the same.

Makes me so mad…

He immediately slammed the doors in their face and stayed put there.

"Oi, kitsune! Get those crazed fangirls of yours outta here! They disturb the basketball practices too much.

"And get them to cheer for you to inflate your ego a little more?"

"NANI?"

"I couldn't be more bothered."

A fist landed on Sakuragi's head. It was the gorilla. "Get back in and continue with drills!"

"H-hai!" Can't believe that he's actually Haruko-chan's brother…

Then the banging on the door stopped, and a new voice was heard. "Ano…could you let me in?"

Sakuragi opened the door to get a peep. Outside, standing at a height of about 165cm, was a fair-skinned girl with jet-black hair.

Great, kitsune's twin…

She widened the doorway by her self and stepped in. All eyes, on the basketball court and from outside, turned to look at this newcomer.

The girl scratched the back of head her and with a lopsided grin, asked, "Is this where Shohoku's basketball team trains?"

All of them nodded their head, twice.

"Is Ayako and Akagi here then?"

Sakuragi gulped. "Hai."

"Oh." She then walked in, not very bothered by the pairs of eyes on her. Outside, whispering of voices were heard. Some were about her and Rukawa.

Kitsune's twin and girl?

She walked casually towards Ayako and bowed. Grinning brightly after which. "Ayako-nee, don't you recognise me? Yukiko-chan's here." Then she turned to Akagi, "Akagi-nii?"

Ayako was the first to snap out of her daze. "Yukiko-chan?…Yukiko-chan!" She hugged the girl all of a sudden, causing most eyes to widen, if they could do so any further.

Letting go of the smaller girl, she turned to the captain. "Akagi, she's Watanabe-san's daughter who helped organise last years championships and even refereed some games, remember?"

"Yu-Yukiko-chan? Is that really you?"

"Hai."

Akagi smiled. Then realising that everyone else was still not clear, he introduced her. "Minna, this, as you all probably know, is Watanabe Yukiko, Shohoku's highest scorer ever for the entrance exams."

The girl grinned and waved enthusiastically at the audience. "Ha-o! Just call me Yukiko, please."

Some became even more dazed, while others snapped out of it.

Rukawa was one of the firsts.

Ayako queried the young girl yet again. "Yukiko-chan, what are you doing here in Shohoku? Another job transfer?"

"H-hai, Ayako-nee. Otousan is to organise the championships this year and was moved here to be the middleman. I'm here to help organise the championships as well and help you guys as and when needed."

"I see…"

"Demo, I won't be taking part in basketball as I have chosen another. Otousan recommended me to try another activity. He has, though, asked me to come and observe you all."

Finding that some of the others were still dazed, Akagi shouted yet another command. "Carry on with practice!"

And so they did. The Rukawa-fanclub continued cheering loudly, eyeing the new girl suspiciously.

~ After practice…~

The basketballers panted heavily. Today's practice had been more vigorous then the others they'd had before. The fangirls were still out there, screaming for Rukawa at the top of their lungs. 

"Kogure-kun, have a drink."

*blush* "Aa. Arigato Yukiko-chan."

Yukiko had gone to the vending machines to get drinks for the exhausted players and was now giving them out.

Haruko was still there, waiting for her brother and gazing at Rukawa.

Akagi thought that now was the most available time to talk to those two 'troublemakers'.

"Sakuragi, Rukawa, come here!"

Sakuragi dashed up to the captain, having full knowledge of Haruko and the new girl being in view. Rukawa, however, took long, lazy strides.

All three got settled down, just as Yukiko came over.

"Akagi-nii, Sakuragi-kun, Rukawa-kun, please, take one."

*fangirls fume alongside Haruko as all three hands, including Rukawa's, stretch out for a can *

"Aa, arigato Yukiko-chan." 

"Arigato gozaimasu, Watanabe-kun."

"Arigato." *more fuming*

Akagi eyed both of them seriously as they gulped down their drinks. And when both had finished, they stared back, confused.

"Listen up, Sakuragi, Rukawa, I was just at the principal's office today and heard some news about you."

He turned to Rukawa. "You have been asleep in class yet again."

*Sakuragi grins like a maniac*

Then he turned to the grinning fool and turned up his volume, loud enough for Haruko to hear. "And you have been daydreaming and doodling in class!"

Sakuragi's grinning stopped. Stupid gorilla…

"So Matsushita-sensei and your teachers have agreed to do make up sessions for the two of you. And he says that if both of you don't buck up, you'll be kicked out of Shohoku's basketball team, and any other extra activity for that matter, you hear me? So I want both of you to start working hard."

"Hai, Akagi-sempai."

"Aa."

"Yukiko-chan will accompany you during these sessions as she has just entered Shohoku High. I do not want her to be nudging you two out of dreamland or having her grades pulled down, hear?"

"Hai!"

"Aa"

"Good. You will be informed on when these sessions will commence soon. Please do work hard, for Shohoku's basketball team."

"HAI!"

"Aa."

"You may go back now. That's all I have to say."

"Rukawa-kun. Rukawa-kun, wake up."

Rukawa opened his eyes yet again to come face to face with his 'twin'. "What do you want now?"

Geeze, and it's still what…twenty more minutes before the bell rings…

They were on the rooftop yet again. Rukawa was sleeping in his usual position, bento untouched. Yukiko kneeled beside him and did her work, eating her sushi slowly. It had been just about a month since they had met, and even though Rukawa would have much preferred his privacy on the rooftop, he didn't mind her being around. She had justified her reason for being there as and when she was. Besides, she didn't really bothered him all **that** much…

"Ne, Rukawa-kun…" she began as she placed her chopsticks down and he supported himself on a bent elbow to see exactly what she wanted this time. "Do you know how to do this question? I kinda got stuck at it, you see."

His picked up her paperwork and began to examine her neat and precise workings carefully.

As the make up sessions had commenced, Rukawa was found to be a genius in both Math and Science. Thus, she approached him whenever needed.

He ran his finger through her work before finally stopping somewhere in the middle. "There," he announced as he tapped the paper gently.

She leaned in nearer to see exactly what was wrong and listened to his explanation as he did so. "Calculation error." Then he smirked. Yes, he **actually** smirked. "Looks like you've got to redo more than half the workings again."

She groaned as she saw the trail of tiny numerals running down the page and all the way to the end of the next page. Sighing heavily, she tore out a fresh sheet of foolscap and began to pen down her workings yet again.

Rukawa smiled as he looked intently at this girl. From the very first day they had met, he had taken a great interest towards her. Not like how he took great interest to basketball, but something else…

Rumours were spreading around the entire school about him and her being the hottest couple ever. Rukawa didn't enjoy this, partly because Yukiko was not having a good time as well. Everytime they walked through the hallways together, her mouth constantly at work, all eyes would fall upon them and a sudden hush would envelop the school. Yukiko would then become very quiet and not say a word for quite some time, usually until they were safely back on the rooftop, their refuge from the world.

His fanclub hadn't given up just yet. They were constantly sending hate mail to her locker and giving her cold shoulders. They ostracised her and made her feel unwelcome to the new school. As much as their classmates tried to cheer her up and tell her not to worry for it was all just a passing phase, Yukiko did not take matters by a different hand. She liked having a plentiful number of friends and enjoying sharing joy and laughter with them.

Rukawa himself wasn't having too good a time. His fanclub were even more persistent and tried all means to get him noticing them, but he just did what he used to so, he ignored them. Yukiko's new fanclub also tried getting at him, challenging him to fights in which he always won. They also disturbed Yukiko whenever she was not around Rukawa.

He rolled over and rested his head on folded hands, facing the clear blue sky. "Eh, have you been getting any trouble from those Year 3 boys again?" 

He never called her by her name. Not because he had forgotten (it was mentioned over and over again in the hallways), but because he wasn't sure. 

"Iie, Rukawa-kun, I haven't been around long enough for them to even approach me." She glanced at her watch yet again and then began packing up her stuff. "Oi, Rukawa-kun, you'd better hurry and eat your bento before the bell rings."

"Aa."

So they spent their breaks on this peaceful rooftop, where the world was far away and set apart from them for just that short period of time. But even if it **was** a short period of time, both were satisfied.

"Sakuragi Hanamichi!"

Sakuragi marched up to the gorilla yet again, wondering exactly what he wanted now.

"Hai?"

"You're gonna learn how to do a penalty throw today."

"Penalty throw? Why do I hafta learn that for? Kitsune can easily do it anytime."

*WHAM*

"Rukawa isn't always so free to be at every game."

"Hn." Is he going to use perfect Kitsune to be an example yet again?

Akagi turned back to where Rukawa and Yukiko were. Rukawa was already getting up, prepared to do a shot just for the ahou. But the captain didn't call his name as expected. Instead, he called hers. "Yukiko-chan, could you come here for a second?"

The girl herself was obviously rather astonished. She pointed to herself, "Me? Akagi-nii?"

"Hai."

All who heard this request were bewildered. Even the fangirls outside, who were just about to cheer for Rukawa, were wondering why this girl was called upon.

Unsure, the girl left her seat and paced up to the two taller men. Akagi passed her a ball, which she caught without much of a problem. "Yukiko-chan, could you please do a penalty shot for Sakuragi here?"

"Huh?"

"Nani? Why don't you just ask Kitsune to do the shot for me?"

Akagi glared down at the Year 1. "If **even** Yukiko-chan can do this shot, I expect you to do it just as well." He then faced the girl. "Will you do it, Yukiko-chan?"

"H-hai!"

The girl stood on the rim of the semicircle and began bouncing the ball in front of her, focusing her gaze on the hoop as she did so, getting the angle for an accurate shot. Then, in a swift movement, the ball was separated from her fingers and landed through the hoop and onto the floor. All, except Akagi and Ayako, were amazed at this girl's ability. 

Sakuragi's jaw dropped wide open. A girl, **not** Rukawa, but a **girl** had just done a perfect shot with just about as much, or maybe even more, grace than Rukawa. If he weren't able to even do a penalty shot, he wouldn't even have the guts to call himself a man. And wouldn't be able to face Haruko, who was also in the court with them, either.

Ayako clapped her hands with glee. "Sugoi, Yukiko-chan! That was just beautiful!"

A tinge of red appeared on the girl's face as she was complimented. "A-Ayako-nee…need not put it in such a flattering way…"

Then the others also began to commend her.

"That was just awesome!"

"How did you do that?"

"It looks even better than the ones Rukawa or Akagi do!"

"Sugoi!"

Her face grew a deeper shade of red with each passing compliment.

"Yukiko-chan, once more please, a little slower if you will," Akagi requested of her yet again and she walked over to where the ball lay and picked it up. It bounced at a steady rhythm as she focused her eyes on the hoop. Then, once more but a little slower, the ball departed from her and passed smoothly through the hoop, hitting the ground and rolling away thereafter.

Once again, those present burst into applause. And it was silenced when Akagi put Sakuragi to the challenge, "Sakuragi, can you do it just as well?"

"HAI!"

Sakuragi's eyebrows were knitted as he focused on the hoop just as hers did and bounced the ball at a steady rhythm. All eyes were on him, and just how he fared would judge how good a player he was. If even a girl can do it, I'm bound to be able to Then, the ball left him and was aimed straight at the hoop only missing by a few degrees and hitting the rim. 

He tried again and again, each time making the same mistake. And sometimes even making a bigger mistake. He noticed that no one consoled him just as when he was learning how to do a Lay-up. And he also noticed that no smart remarks were passed by Rukawa, unlike many other times before.

Then she spoke, "Sakuragi-kun, you are just too tense. Look at your fingers, they are clutching the ball to tightly."

He looked back down at the hand in which the ball was. The tips of his fingers were white. Relax…relax… 

"Let the ball flow freely and with ease from your fingers to the hoop. Use adequate force from your forearm and direct the ball, allow it to sail through the air, not cut through it." Her words were strung together like a harmonious melody made to soothe one's soul.

He took her advice and let it flow through his mind again and again. Then he followed it. The ball sailed through the air and passed through the hoop with much ease. Silence hung over the entire court, only broken by the clapping of hands. Sakuragi turned towards it. Haruko-chan!

But it wasn't Haruko.

It was Yukiko that was clapping her hands and congratulating him. And it was her that had given him such smooth directions. "Well done, Sakuragi-kun. You learn very fast."

It wasn't long after that the rest of them started cheering as well. The fangirls outside were still dazed and Rukawa's expressionless face remained. Unbelievable…

So, accomplishing her mission, Yukiko returned back to where she was originally seated and faced Rukawa. "You have superb teammates, Rukawa-kun."

"Un."

Back where Sakuragi was, Akagi made him do the shot over and over again, bloating up Sakuragi's ego with each smooth penalty shot. Sakuragi was there, again, saying his famous phrase. "Because I am BASKETMAN!"

"Ne, Rukawa-kun," Yukiko queried as she whispered into Rukawa's ear, "does he ever made a slip up when he does that? I mean…does he ever go 'I am BASKETCASE' instead?"

A smile tugged at Rukawa's lips and not too soon after, both were stifling giggles and burst out in uncontrollable laughter thereafter. All eyes were cast upon the pair and wondered what their private joke was. But even more so because they were startled by the fact that Rukawa was **actually laughing**. It was unbelievable.

Sakuragi was glaring at the pair. Exactly what's the joke now…

---------------------------

Yeah! Finally finished this one.

I know it's pretty short…yah…I just **luv** Yukiko…J 

©Copyrighted by JadOo Enterprises 2001


	3. Kaechan and Yukichan

Melting Ice ****

Melting Ice

__

Chapter three: Kae-chan & Yuki-chan

Disclaimer: All following characters of SlamDunk do not belong to me. Yukiko is mine.

Certain translations (my version, just in case you need em):

Hentai = perverts/perverted

Imouto = younger sister

Shimatta = oh no!

Shikaishi = hang in there 

---------------------

/WE ARE THE NEW POWER GENERATION/ The music blared in Rukawa's ears as he whizzed past buildings and trees on his Panasonic bike. /WE WANT TO CHANGE THE WORLD/ His basketball was in his bag as usual as he headed towards the public basketball court to practice.

He came to a stop just outside the familiar grounds and switched off his mp3 player. Pulling up his sleeves, he got ready for yet another self-training session.

But something held him back from stepping into the court. And it pulled him straight to a dark alley, where three boys were surrounding one girl.

He stayed in the shadows for a little while, not wanting to be very much involved in this matter. Then he saw them closing in on her as drool dripped down onto the floor.

Hentai…

The girl did something, because a whining sound was produced soon after that and the other two's voices grew threatening. "Why you…"

"You shouldn't have done that, girl…You don't know just how much trouble you've gotten yourself into."

"…"

"We would have been a bit more lax…but you just had to do that."

"…"

A series of punches and kicks came shortly afterwards. The first few dodged, but the rest at full blow.

…They've gone too far

*THUMP*

One of the two landed on the floor and winced in pain as Rukawa kicked the other as well. All were taken by surprised and rather seriously injured. "You should never have even laid a finger on her…"

Three pairs of eyes widened. "Ru…Rukawa…Kaede…"

*KICK* *KICK* *KICK*

All three heads fell lifelessly onto the ground after each being given a kick by his basketball shoes. "Never call me by my first name…"

He turned back to the injured girl to see if she was okay.

Then fear struck him.

Porcelain white skin. 

Jet black hair. 

He didn't need to be told who this was, for he already knew just at a glance.

Quickly, without any wastage of time, he scooped up the girl (in a faded pair of blue jeans and a navy blue top) and ran to his bike. Slinging her onto his back and supporting her with one hand, he cycled as fast as he could to the nearest clinic, the other hand steering the bike.

Someone help, please, anyone…

It had begun to pour when Haruko stepped out of the bookshop. They hadn't restocked yet, so her coming here was a total waste. Just as she was about to open her blue portable umbrella, she heard a bulky object crash onto the floor.

Turning to see what happened, she saw a fallen Panasonic bike lying on the ground outside the neighbourhood clinic, drenched. Curiously, she walked towards the clinic. She knew she had seen that bike somewhere before.

Panasonic…

Rukawa's. 

He rode it to school everyday.

Rukawa-kun is such a hurried state?

Noise emerged from the clinic. Someone was asking the nurse to allow him to go in first. 

"Please! She's awfully hurt…and with this rain, she will fall seriously ill!"

"Gomen ne. I cannot do anything about it. Please sir, wait patiently in line just like the rest."

"I beg of you! PLEASE!"

Haruko peered in…and got the shock of her life.

Ru-Rukawa-kun?…and…that's…YUKIKO-CHAN?

Rukawa finally gave up and returned to the bench. The nurse tried as much as she could but was only able to move them up two places.

He wished they would hurry. Yukiko was already burning up and he could feel her heat through his wet clothing. He, too, was burning up, but he didn't care just yet.

"Ru-Rukawa-kun?"

His head spun to the owner of that voice.

"Gorilla no imouto?"

*flickering 'x' on Haruko's forehead*

"Rukawa-kun…Yukiko-chan…what happened?"

And, almost as if instinctively, Haruko reached out to touch the pale girl's forehead. But before she could even touch it, she out already feel the heat that was radiating out from the white surface. Shimatta!

Yukiko was already trembling with the heat taking over her. The boy stroked her beautiful face. "Shikaishi, Yuki-chan…"

"RUKAWA KAEDE-SAN!"

He stood up almost immediately when he heard his name being called out. Finally… He carried her in his arms and entered the examining room, with Haruko following behind.

Aquamarine eyes opened to dark purple surroundings. So dark… Yukiko's mouth opened into a large 'O' as she yawned and tried to stretch. But she couldn't. Not under these heavy covers. Heavy blue covers.

Taking a closer look at her surroundings, she saw posters of famous basketball players stuck on the wall and a mini basketball hoop on the door. Shrugging off the thick blue comforter, she then realised exactly what it was that she was wearing – a large blue Nike Air tee shirt and a comfortable pair of shorts. Ever since when did I have these? And what am I doing here in this unfamiliar place?

Soft snores emerged from the floor just to her right. She bent over to see who was making the noise, and a wet rectangular piece of cloth slid off her forehead and onto the asleep being. Why was a wet towel on my head? It woke him up, of course, and a loud grunt was heard as he flung off the towel and sat upright. He turned to her and glowered. "I don't care who you are, but as long as…"

Then he saw to whom exactly he was speaking to. "You're up," he stated flatly.

"Aa. Um…what am I doing here?"

"You don't remember?" He frowned.

"Err…no."

"Do you know who I am then?"

"Yes, like duh. Of course I know who you are, Rukawa-kun."

"What do you last remember?"

"Huh? Slow down. What's with all the questions?"

*sigh* "Never mind."

"What am I doing here? You still haven't answered that."

"Are you hungry?"

"Yeah…hey, are you trying to change the topic!?"

"I'll explain over breakfast…"

Yukiko's mouth watered, as a plate, on which a teriyaki chicken burger sat on, was set before her, accompanied by a mug of steaming hot tea. She couldn't believe that Rukawa was actually able to cook. Few of the guys she knew could do that.

She watched as he brought another set of breakfast to the tiny counter, which separated the living room from the kitchen, and sat down next to her. She had so many questions buzzing around in her head, waiting to be answered. He hadn't even touched his food when she fired away. "You live alone?" she raised an eyebrow.

"Aa."

"How come?"

"…" he stared at his plate of food, still waiting to be eaten. "Do you want to start eating before the food becomes cold?"

"Uh, um, okay…"

Silence settled between the two after that. She had so many questions to ask. He didn't want to answer. But both knew that the silence would soon be broken once the food was finished, and soon enough, it was.

"Ahhhh. Sugoi, Rukawa-kun! That was delicious." Yukiko sipped her now warm tea and beamed at the boy who was clearing up the dishes.

"Glad you liked it." He took both plates to the sink and cleaned them up before returning to her. "So," he began as he drank his tea, "what do you want to know first?"

"Why I am here. What's with this overly huge shirt and fitting shorts." [Note: she is now wearing her jeans and top, which was cleaned thoroughly, thanks to Rukawa.]

"What do you remember last seeing?"

"…I dunno, some alley or something like that. All I know is, some Year 3s were giving me a bit of trouble and I kinda kicked one where it hurts…"

Yeowch… "Okay, then they lashed back and you were knocked out. It started raining, so I brought you to the doctor's and since you were burning up already and I don't know where you live, I brought you back here. I met Gorilla's imouto along the way and she lent a hand. The shirt's mine and the shorts are hers."

"…"

"…Relax, she was the one who changed your clothes."

"Oh, Haruko-chan? I see…" she looked thoughtful for a moment. Rukawa's mouth felt sore from all that talking. "Where is she now?"

"Home."

"Oh…" she shifted on the stool such that she was facing him. He looked pale. Not the kind of pale that he always was, but a paler shade. Instinctively, she reached out to feel his forehead and startled him. The very moment her fingers came in contact with his forehead, he jerked his entire head back. "Rukawa-kun, you're burning up…"

Am I? This time, he too felt his forehead.

"I think we had better get you back in there."

"…"

"Don't worry, I'll clear up the mugs, okay? You, on the other hand, should get back into bed and get well."

He grunted in response and then, after gulping down the last of his tea, he headed into the room and shut the door. She sighed as she rinsed the mugs, dried them and placed them back onto the dresser. Filling up a glass of water, she wondered how he survived alone like this. He lived in a small, single-storey apartment that contained a bedroom, a kitchen, a living room, a bathroom, and a balcony, all of reasonable size. She didn't think it would have been costly or anything. And it did make her wonder where he got all the money. But what really bothered her was that he lived alone. No parents, no nothing…

Sighing yet again, she took a large bowl out of the cabinet and filled it with running tap water and added a few cubes of ice, which she got from the mini freezer. Careful so as not to spill anything, she brought both glass and bowl to his room and 'turned' the knob with her forearm, nudging it open after which.

He was back on the floor, sitting upright this time, eyes on the door, as if waiting her arrival. Upon seeing that she was balancing objects on either hands. He stood up and helped her out.

As she soaked the towel in the icy water, she flung questions at him. "Ne, Rukawa-kun, you still haven't told me…"

"Let's not talk about that, Yuki-chan."

She blinked. What did he just call her? "Yu-Yuki-chan?"

"Aa…you don't mind if I call you that, do you?"

"Iya. Demo, since you're gonna use such a **cheesy** nickname on me, I might as well pick up one for you as well…"

"Cheesy? Yare yare. Don't you think you went a bit overboard?"

But she wasn't listening. "Rukawa Kaede…" she repeated his name over and over again in a soft whisper, trying to find some use of the words. He scowled. He didn't like his first name to be used very much. Then, she snapped her fingers as that deep-in-thought look vanished from her face. "That's it. Kae-chan, I'll go see Otousan after this."

"Otousan? Kae-chan?" Snapping fingers when they're in ice cold water?

"Hai. Kae-chan sounds almost as cheesy as Little Snow. So there." A cold towel slapped itself onto Rukawa's forehead as she grinned yet again. Pouting her lips a little, she bossed him around, "You'd better use the bed, the cold floor won't do you any good. Drink lots of water. I'll be around cleaning up the house. Call me whenever needed and get lots of rest."

"Hai, hai." He got up and plunked himself down on the bed, careful not to lose the towel. Not too soon after, he fell asleep, leaving the girl to fold up the sheets on the ground and throwing the pillow back onto the bed. 

Mr Watanabe's eyebrows knitted together as he questioned the all so familiar girl in front of him. "'Kiko-chan, what do you mean by 'why don't we **give** him a bit of money and sponsor him or something'? Are you asking me to give this Rukawa guy a whole load of money or something?"

"Well…yes…?"

He frowned. What on earth is this girl up to? "Whatever for? It's like giving a stack of bank notes to a total stranger!"

Now it was her turn to frown. "Kae-chan is **not** a total stranger."

Kae-chan? What's their relationship? "Well…you get what I mean. I'm not gonna give a thousand yen to this Kae-whatever person."

"Otousan, the least you could do is pay him back for my medical fees."

"What medical fees?"

*sigh* Yukiko took in another gulp of her fizzy drink. She needed to hurry on this. Rukawa was still back there and would be wondering where she had gone. And there was no telling whether he would be mad at her for taking his house keys along just in case…

"Look, Kae-chan took me to a doctor, okay?"

"Why?"

"Because I just happened to get caught in the heavy downpour yesterday and got really sick and he just happened to be about."

"Why didn't you pay for it yourself?"

"…" This conversation was going into dangerous territory. Yukiko knew that if she even mentioned those three morons, her father would, without a doubt, immediately get a transfer out of this state and she would be off again in a few days. This was **so** difficult. The longest time ever she spent in a particular high school and the closest friend she had made were all here in Shohoku, and now they would all be taken away even by a slip of the tongue.

"Well?"

"I fainted before Kae-chan found me."

"NANI?"

"I just got this really, really high fever, that's all."

She's hiding something…but what is it? Mr Watanabe gave a heavy sigh. This was his **only** daughter and yet the number of problems he got from her was twice that of other people. "I'll do it then…but on one condition – I must meet this Rukawa first."

Yukiko grinned from ear to ear when she heard this. "HAI~" She then skipped away and headed back to Rukawa's apartment, leaving a very disturbed father to ponder over certain issues.

Rukawa sat leaned against the wall in the single bed of his and stared into the dark purple of his room. He had woken up to find Yukiko missing without a word. That girl had taken **his** house keys along with her and now he couldn't get out of the house. Where has she gone to? But that wasn't the most important question…Is she gonna come back?

He hoped so.

For one, he wouldn't ever be able to get out of this blasted apartment ever again, and for two, he needed to talk to her about some things.

But most importantly, he couldn't stand not having her around. 

Then he heard something that lit up a smile on his face. He heard the front door click open and soft footsteps heading towards his room.

He could have leapt out of bed to greet her. But instead, he put a frown on his face and went outside to meet her. "Where did you go?" he asked, in a low growl.

Man, am I in trouble… Sheepishly, she scratched the back of her head [isn't she **always** doing that?] and gave a lopsided grin. "Ahaha…Kae-chan…I, erm, I was just out doing some, err, errands. Yes, that's it, I was doing an errand."

He lifted an eyebrow. "And you had to take **my** keys along with you?"

"Ehehehe…" The lopsided grin remained on her lips she scratched her head even more. "Su-sumimasen…"

"…Heh…"

"?"

The frown disappeared from Rukawa's face as he began to chuckle…then laugh. "BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA" He laughed hysterically as he pointed at Yukiko with one hand clutching his stomach. "You…you look so BWAHAHAHA funny! AHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

An 'x' flickered on her temple. "Teme! You tricked me!" She grimaced and a clenched fist landed itself on Rukawa's bobbing head.

"ITAI!" He rubbed the bump on his head and glared at her. "What did you hafta do that for?"

She folded her arms and replied with a high-and-mighty air to her voice. "Hmph! Serves you right!"

"Hai, hai…" He turned around and took slow, long strides into the kitchen to get two glasses of water. She followed behind and sat down at the counter.

"Kae-chan…"

"Um?"

"Do you have a little time after school on Wednesday?"

Bringing both glasses over and placing them on the counter, he queried, "Why?"

"Um, well, Otousan needs to see you, you see…"

He sat down right opposite her. "Why?"

"Because…erm…I'm trying to get him to like…sponsor you…"

"Sponsor me?"

"Hai. It's not like I'm…saying you're poor or anything, but I just thought that since you were living alone…"

He didn't need her to continue. He already knew. He **so** hated it when people did this; that was why he never let anyone enter his house unless necessary. He gave an exasperated sigh. "Yuki-chan, I have a part time job."

Her eyes widened. "Eh?"

"How else do you think I survive? I don't live off my parents… …I don't have any…"

*gasp*

A silence hung over the two. She didn't know what to say. He was waiting for some weird remark that he would have to bear with, and possibly ignore.

"…"

"…"

"…Ka-Kae-chan…"

"…"

"I…I didn't know…"

"…It's alright. No one else does…"

"Gomen ne…"

"Iya…Is that all you wanted to talk about?"

"Iie. I just wanted to ask a little favour of you when you speak to him."

He was curious. "What?"

"Could you not tell him about the three of them?"

"?…Oh, you mean the ahous…No problem."

"Arigato gozaimasu." She finished up the rest of her water before turning to leave. He panicked (somewhat) when he saw her do that. "Cho-chotto matte yo!"

Half-turning, she gave him a confused look. "Nani?"

He dashed forward and grabbed the keys from her palm. Clumsily opening the front door, he explained, "I just want to make sure you don't take the keys again."

Smiling broadly, she stepped out of his apartment and slipped her feet into her soft, comfy sneakers. After doing so, she walked away in the other direction, only turning to wave when she had reached the stairs. "Ja ne, Rukawa-kun!"

Ru-Rukawa-kun? I thought I was Kae-chan…

---------------------------------

Yay yay! Finally done with this chpt…so long…I think twice the length of the others…

IMPT NOTE: Rukawa only acts like that whenever he's around Yukiko and most preferably when along with her. He doesn't turn into do_ahou in few months… 

©Copyrighted by JadOo Enterprises 2001 


	4. Gone

****

Melting Ice

__

Chapter four: Gone

Disclaimer: Need I do this again? Okay then, **zilch **of the characters belong to me…I mean, those from SlamDunk don't belong to me.

Okay, okay, I know all of you want to have my head off for delaying this chapter and everything. The reason is because I have another ongoing fanfic and an idea just happened to strike me a month ago and I started a new short piece fic, not for SlamDunk, sadly. Gomen ne.

Yeah, and I **know** Rukawa is extremely outta character.

J.I.C. info…language usage:

Teme = darn you. (According to AXN's translations)

Hontou? = Really?

Nanda? = What?

Iie/Iya = No

Genki = enthusiastic (I'm not too sure…)

Domo arigato gozaimasu = thank you very much

Gambatte = All the best/ Good luck

------------------------------

All heads turned in the same direction as a junior made his way through the Year 3 corridor. It had been an uncommon sight since Sakuragi Hanamichi last picked a bone with a group of them. All who saw could easily identify the boy whose hands were tucked deep into his trouser pockets.

His name: Rukawa Kaede

Year: One

School: Shohoku High (like duh!)

Position: Super rookie of the basketball team

Popularity: Girl magnet

Business: Unknown

So much focus and attention could have made Rukawa go dizzy if he had not gotten used to it. He felt like he was being examined, like a laboratory test rat or something. Thankfully, none of the Year 3's had decided to pick a fight with him yet. And even if they did, he would probably be oblivious to them.

He had business to do.

He scanned the unfamiliar faces as he walked through the passageway specially made for him. It was as if he were crossing the Red Sea with the waters parted nicely. 

He got appalled looks from Akagi and Kogure as he passed by Class 6 and stopped right in front of Class 7.

There they were.

They most definitely weren't going to get away.

Without any hesitation, Rukawa strolled in at a leisurely pace, face holding a stony coldness, only eyes flaming with anger.

The three didn't notice him whilst they were still happily chatting away and making merry laughter until he gave a swift blow, knocking them and the tables over.

*gasp* Looks of bewilderment were exchanged all over the classroom and even in the corridor outside. The three got up, each clutching the spot where injured, either by classroom furniture or Rukawa.

"Teme, what did you do that for?" demanded one.

Rukawa didn't answer; he just did an uppercut, connecting his clenched fist with the older boy's jaw.

"Kei!" the other two were quick to assist him. 

Rubbing his jaw, Kei got up and scowled at the younger, yet taller boy. If he was going to talk with his fists, then they might as well do the same.

"Shinnosuke! Keni'chi!" he commanded the other two.

"Un!" they responded, simultaneously.

The three dashed forward, throwing punches and kicking wildly at the youngster, yet missing every single time. The classroom was now deserted, all had retreated into the corridors and a few to the discipline master's office.

Rukawa was still triumphant no matter what these do_ahous did. As much as these idiots tried to fight, they obviously had not had it in them. He had just about had enough of them pretending not to know what was going on and was just about to kick their sorry asses when the discipline master came in and demanded to know "the meaning of all this".

He didn't answer, of course, but instead cast his cold eyes upon the now squirming three and spat somewhat in an icy tone, "If you three ever dare to pull off that stunt again, I promise you I will reveal your big ugly truth and beat the living daylights out of you."

Not a word more and he left the classroom without the need to shove past anyone for once again; they parted to form a pathway.

Rukawa left the Year 3 corridor that day, leaving everyone in total confusion.

Yukiko returned to the rooftop, frowning slightly. Rukawa had disappeared somewhere and didn't turn up at the rooftop. She had been running around the entire school campus in hopes of finding him, but to no avail. Exhausted, she plopped down onto the cement and began indulging herself in her food and began doing her assignments thereafter.

A click of the turning handle was barely audible to her, so she knew not of the shadow which made it's way towards her gradually. When it finally cast itself upon her, she had already fallen into a deep, tired sleep from both the running around and the hot summer sun beating down on her.

Rukawa let out a small sigh, with which to the reason he knew not. Yukiko's head was resting peacefully on top of her paperwork with a sharp-tipped pen dangling loosely from her left hand. Her neat handwriting, thankfully, was not blotted for she did not drool.

In the corner of his eye, he caught the steady movement of a second hand as it made its full 360° clockwise turn upon the black leather watch strapped upon her right wrist. It was only two more minutes before the bell signalling the end of recess would ring. Gently, he prodded her awake and found himself staring into clear aquamarine eyes; the opposite of his own deep sapphire ones. 

"Oh, it's you," she yawned as she lifted her head from the thick stack of papers. She blinked for a moment or two, recollecting her thoughts. Then, in a chiding sort of manner, she wrinkled her nose at him. "Where **were** you? I've been running around the school campus in hopes of finding even a trace of your existence."

"Hontou? I was just at the Year 3 corridor, trying to find someone," he replied, keeping as close to the truth yet not letting out any hints.

"Oh, okay. But next time, please inform me whenever you're going to run off somewhere," she said, not giving a second thought to as why he might have been in a restricted area. Jerking her head a little from side to side to loosen her muscles, she noted the black strap on her wrist. She glanced at the round face then gasped; they were going to be late if they didn't get moving soon. Hurriedly, she capped the pen with clumsy efforts and promptly threw them into her pencil case. Her sudden actions somewhat indicated to Rukawa that he should collect the papers, which was an easy job for they were not strewn about. 

She gathered loose strands of hair and tucked them neatly behind her ears, making sure that she would step back into the classroom looking all prim and proper, like how her mum would've wanted her to. 

Mum… Yukiko was set adrift on memory bliss of the dear woman. The constant nagging and tips here and there. Life with her had been sweet strawberry shortcake, but once she left, it was replaced with bitter chocolate. Food; her cooking had always been a blessing to their household. 

"Yuki-chan," a soft voice jerked her out of her reverie and returned her to reality. 

Without a single word of response, Yukiko walked past the towering boy and headed to the roof entrance, oblivious to his existence. Rukawa furrowed his eyebrows and paced after her. She's acting weird…

"Rukawa-kun, psst, Rukawa-kun," an eager whisper from light hair Naomi snatched his attention away from the overwhelmingly difficult math problem. 

"Nanda?" he buzzed back, annoyed. Their math teacher was apparently too deeply absorbed by a self-help book to notice the whispering voices.

"What's with Yukiko-chan?" she queried as she shifted in her chair a little so as to face the aforementioned. Sitting just in front of the two caused so much communication problems with Yukiko during class time, much more Rukawa.

The boy turned his head a little to see exactly what the big deal was. Yukiko was staring into her textbook, where all the questions were stated and was twirling her pen around, subconsciously. Her pupils were dull and lacked their usual spark. They weren't even moving across the page like a normal human's would do, proving that she wasn't reading any of the text. Clearly, there was something on her mind.

Nudging her a little, a look of expression (somewhat) cast itself over his face. "Woi, Yuki-chan," he nudged her again.

"Huh?" Finally a response of some sort. "Oh…gomen ne," she smiled sheepishly, "just having a little thought about something."

She took a firmer grip on her pen and began reading the question and penning the answers neatly down on a sheet of foolscap. Taking a glance at Rukawa's digital Casio watch, she suddenly realised that it was Wednesday. "Rukawa-kun, it's Wednesday," she reminded him.

"Huh…Oh, I remember," he responded, keeping in mind that he was to talk to her dad today.

"Don't forget what I told you. Don't mention those three morons from the other day…it's really important that you don't," she whispered harshly.

"Un," he answered before turning his attention back to the overwhelmingly difficult math problem just as the bell rang for lessons to be over. Hurriedly, Yukiko slipped her textbooks and pencil case into her bag as Rukawa dumped his into his hand carrier and together, the two left the classroom, headed for the Watanabe's residence.

"Gather!" Akagi yelled to the Shohoku basketball members and scanned through the familiar faces of his teammates. Someone was missing, apparently. 

Sakuragi his first thought. But no, Sakuragi Hanamichi was there indeed, looking tough like the idiot he was.

"If it isn't that baka, then who could it be?" he whispered under his breath. All of them were frequent comers and certainly no one had asked for an excuse.

"Ah, Captain?" Yasuda raised his hand his he stepped forward to report. Somehow, he was always in full knowledge of who had not come on any practices and the reason why.

"What is it, Yasuda?"

"Rukawa…"

Rukawa! Akagi scanned the line of players yet again and realised that the super rookie had indeed not come for the lesson. Where could the Kitsune be?

"Ah…Captain…Rukawa said that he had some important business to attend to today. He will be coming later," explained the tiny-eyed boy.

"Oh?" Akagi asked.

Kogure, who had been standing behind the big man, stepped forward. It seemed he, too, had something to report about the missing lad. "Akagi, Rukawa and Yukiko-chan were seen leaving the school together. I…I haven't any clue why, but I suppose it must be important; Rukawa would never miss a practice without a good reason."

That surprised Akagi, and the rest of them, even more. Not only was Rukawa missing, he had gone off with a girl, and what was more, he had barged in earlier this morning into the Year 3 corridor and beaten three guys up. Somehow or another, this did not quite make sense. How were all the events linked?

Two cup of tea were placed on the desk as Mr Watanabe straightened out his paperwork and misplaced items, making the place neat for his guest – a tall young boy with a large build and somewhat untidy jet-black hair. His daughter had just returned home from school and was already serving the two with home-made delicacies (prepared the day before) and steaming hot tea.

"Arigato gozaimasu," mumbled the boy as he took a seat across from where Mr Watanabe sat. Obviously unused to such a wide and comfortable chair, he shifted a little in his seat in order to get out of an awkward position. Waving his daughter away, in a gesture for her to leave them, he greeted the handsome young lad now seated before him.

"So…Rukawa Kaede-san, is it?" he queried, making sure he got the name right. How embarrassing it would be if he had not done so.

"Un," the boy replied with a curt nod of his head.

"Did 'Kiko-chan inform you of why you are here? That girl likes to do things without others acknowledgement, you see."

"Yes, she did tell me. But, if you would pardon my saying so, the sponsoring isn't the exact reason why you have called me here, sir." This boy was extremely polite in his mannerism and speech, Mr Watanabe decided. Not only that, he could see right through the man's plan. She must have let a slip earlier on. He gave a bemused smile and agreed.

"You're right. The real reason why I asked you to come down today…" he paused, making sure that she wasn't outside, listening to every word said. Slowly, and carefully, he wheeled his office chair back and peered beneath his desk. Sure enough, a tiny black piece of metal was there – a highly sensitive bugging device, he assumed. How ridiculous! To think that the girl would actually have invaded his den, his private quarters, and planted such a thing there.

Smirk plastered fast on his face, he plucked the circular device off the polished wood and cleared his throat a little. "*Ahem* Watanabe Yukiko! Kindly desist from eavesdropping on our conversation and get your ass back where it belongs before I come out and whack you hard on the rump!"

A shriek could be heard just outside the den and a thumping up the stairs was heard shortly after. Chuckling to himself, the man turned his attention back to the silent boy who was still looking serious. "Where were we…Ah, yes, the reason why I asked you to come down today is to tell me why 'Kiko-chan didn't return home on Saturday and had stayed over at your place."

"She got caught in the rain and was overcome by a high fever. I happened to meet her and took her to the doctor when she passed out. Since I did not know where she stayed, I took the other alternative," he answered, choosing his words so carefully as not to let out anything about the alley incident.

"Ah…I see. So, how would you, then, explain the bruise marks on her?"

Rukawa blinked. What bruise marks…I didn't notice any… It then came to his realisation that those ahous who had kicked her had also left a few marks. Oh damn… How was he going to answer this one…

"Rukawa-san?" The man seated across him narrowed his eyes upon seeing the sudden hesitation of his. Something had definitely and for some reason, he was not about to let it spill out so casually. "Rukawa-san, could you answer my question, please?"

"Oh," the young lad snapped out of his thoughts and explained, as calmly as he could to Yukiko's dad. "Well…" he sucked in a little air and paused. Yukiko's words were ringing in his head, echoing.

"I just wanted to ask a little favour of you when you speak to him." "Could you not tell him about the three of them?" "Don't mention those three morons from the other day…it's really important that you don't."

Why was she trying to keep this little piece of information ever so secretly from her own, dear old daddy?

Should he just spit it out?

"Rukawa-san," a stern voice was heard yet again, demanding the truth behind all this. Despite all the arguing and contradictions and 'what if's that were clouding up his mind, Rukawa finally decided to let it go. After all, how bad could it be?

"She was harrassed in an alley," he blurted out, feeling a little relieved upon unloading the huge weight on him. However, it didn't feel much of a comfort when he saw the horrified expression on Mr Watanabe's face. His eyes bulged and face pale. In pure shock.

Rukawa felt **extremely** uncomfortable. "Mr Watanabe…is anything the matter?" he inquired. Something was wrong, deadly wrong. 

"No…nothing. The…the sponsoring…I will be willing to sponsor you, Rukawa-san," he said, pulling himself back together. "Expect a check in the mail next week. You may leave now." He ushered, if not shooed, the clueless boy out and slumped against the closed door.

…I didn't think that here, too, it would happen…this is it, I'm going to use the ultimate tactic… 

With haste, he picked up the phone and dialed a number at an incredible speed, the ring tone ended and a female voice was heard, "mushi mushi?"

"This is Watanabe, Niwa-san, could you please give Shikibu-san a message? Yes…I demand an immediate job transfer…yes, thank you very much…"

With a click, he hung up the phone. Yukiko was not going to be pleased, but this was the only way to keep her safe… 

A week had passed, and sure enough, when Rukawa had checked his mailbox, there was an envelope with his name scrawled on it in a hurried manner. Nevertheless, a check for forty thousand yen was placed inside and signed "Watanabe".

Watanabe…much had happened during the passing week and it left him in a total unrest. Yukiko was extremely quiet now, and her frequent chatter had died down all of a sudden. Even her mood had caused the usually lively class to turn dead still. Everyday spent at school felt like a drill now. Naomi and the rest had tried to cheer her up even a little, but nothing seemed to work, not this time. 

It dragged on for days and days and days. A dreaded feeling came across each member of Class 10 everytime they entered the room, which seemed to have a blue aura fill it, gloom. 

Sighing, Rukawa turned the key and locked the door behind him. In no less than ten minutes, he would enter the moody classroom again. This was getting real disheartening. Even the teachers got worried when no enthusiasm was shown in a single student's work. As he slung his bag over his shoulder, he took slow paces to the staircase and made his way down.

Sunlight was streaming onto the pathways and roads as the street-lamps clicked off automatically. Sounds of schoolmates greeting each other as they met and proceeded to their different schools together could be heard all around. The working class people were up early and made their way to work in their own cars or even by public transport. Other ringing bicycle bells like his could be heard, wheels whizzing past buildings with feet paddling furiously.

This was one of the few days where Rukawa stayed awake on his bike and pedalled slowly to school. He had woken up early and made his own breakfast, as usual. In no hurry at all to get to school, and without his music drowning out all other noises, he made his way past gentle scenery and smiling people, waving to a few whom he knew rather well. Those silly schoolgirls squealed whenever he waved vaguely in their direction to a certain other person. It could become a rather amusing life for him.

The corridors were filled with chitter chatter and laughter from the other students. Some of the boys were carrying books for their own girls and others cracking stupid jokes, causing by-passers to laugh. It was a normal enough day at school. Once in the rather dull classroom, which was awkwardly quiet today, he dumped his bag on the chair and took a look at the empty one beside it. Few of the girls whispered when he did so. They seemed to know something, but what was it?

Yukiko had not yet arrived, and it was already rather late. Usually, she would be here by far earlier than the rest of them, only to be found later reading a book or drawing in her sketchbook and sometimes, if she needed to, did her uncompleted homework. But it was not so today. The others had also noticed this, of course.

The bell rang and she was still nowhere to be found. Though he found it rather curious, Rukawa made no sound whatsoever. Surely, the teacher would notice it and account for her not being present. Their form teacher strolled in like she did every morning and took their attendance. Upon realising that Yukiko was not in school, she raised and eyebrow and shrugged it off. Apparently, she expected it.

"Sensei…" Rukawa stood up. "Yukiko-chan…is she sick today?"

It is written in the rule book that if a student fell sick or was unable to attend school dues to any other reason, the school was to be informed before lessons started, if not, it would be counted as playing truant, unless an accident happened while making their way to school.

She looked thoughtful for a while before answering his question. "Iie."

He sat down wordlessly, pondering over the different possibilities of what may have happened.

Lessons dragged on period after period, and, without the usual genkiness, Rukawa soon fell back into his old habit and fell asleep quickly. When the bell for reccess rang, few of the students, curiously, left the classroom. Naomi prodded Rukawa awake and the bleary-eyed boy's immediate reaction was, "Yuki-chan?"

"Iya. It's only me," she replied. "Rukawa-kun, we have something to tell you…"

The group that had stayed behind gathered together behind her. Rukawa, who had obviously not expected this, stood up and ran his fingers through his messy crop of hair. 

Naomi continued. "Yukiko-chan…we knew that she would not be here today."

His eyes widened. Nani!

"I guess she didn't tell you anything about this. But she did, though, leave you something just before she left."

A green hair girl stepped forward, in her hands was a neatly wrapped blue bento. "Yuki-chan…she wanted you to have this. She met Naomi and I two days ago after school and explained her precipitation to us. It's rather difficult to say…I believe she left a note for you or something. I'm sure it'll be easier for you to understand if she was the one to tell you…"

Rukawa looked apprehensive. Who in the right mind who actually believe such a cock and bull story?

"Please, Rukawa-kun, Yuki-chan went through slot of trouble to prepare this for you," another classmate said.

With the encouraging looks from Naomi and just about all the others, he finally reached out and took it without saying anything. He walked out of the classroom with the bento tucked under his arm and went to where he…they always went – the rooftop.

The glaring rays of light shone upon the cemented rooftop as Rukawa sat down on the flat ground. He fingered the peacock blue of the bento's wrapping, pondering on whether he should open it. This could be a joke, a very bad joke. If anything, he would always be the first to hear Yukiko out and assist her in any and every way possible.

Finally he decided "oh, what the heck!" and carefully undid the knots.

The food was carefully arranged. Sushi, rice balls and other delicately made tidbits fitted nicely in the rectangular container. Just underneath the blue cloth, however, a note met him. Actually, it was more of a letter. 

It read so in something that was undeniably Yukiko's handwriting:

__

Kae-chan,

I will be far away by the time this gets on your hands, that is, if Naomi and Riku pass this to you as I have told them to. Gomen ne, I know that I should have told you first, but it is extremely difficult to say it to you in the face. I've tried ever since Otousan told me, but I found myself speechless and unable to utter a word about this everytime I got the chance. 

I guess you already know what has happened to me. Otousan asked for an immediate transfer when he was informed of my encounter with those three on Saturday. Maa, please don't get angry with yourself, I don' t hold it against you. He would've found out sooner or later anyway, and I myself had not been discreet enough to hide the bruises from him.

I just want to say 'domo arigato gozaimasu' for what you've done. For taking care of me, always being there whenever I need you and being my pillar of support. I enjoyed the times we had together and I am sure that we will meet again one day. Let's work hard and see each other in Tokyo University, ne? 

Gambatte, Kae-chan. 

- Yuki-chan.

------------------------------------

Lalala…I know it's beginning to get pretty complicated. Actually, I wanted to finish it within the next chapter and all, but due to some new ideas, I've decided to extend it to…8 chapters…?

Also, I know that they are all pretty OoC (Out of character…I think…). Sorry, was unable to have it any other way…

Oh yes…about Yuki-chan's mommy, she doesn't happen to not play an important role, in fact, she's a link to where Yuki-chan is currently staying…lalala…

©Copyrighted by JadOo Enterprises 2001 


	5. Alone

**Melting Ice**

_Chapter five: Alone_

Disclaimer: Blah blah blah…all the following SlamDunk characters dun belong to me. Only the Watanabes and other people whom I need not mention. No point suing me, I'm on the verge of going totally broke if people don't start paying me soon for the lousy stories which I write…*hint hint*

Ha-O everybody! JadOo here. Hope you all more or less enjoyed the last (and horrid, if I must say so myself) chapter where poor Rukawa is seperated from Yuki-chan. La³. Anyway…let's all bring him out of the OoCness and let the real Rukawa be revived once again for he has crawled back into his shell.

I know…I'm pretty inconsistent…

Translation services: :

Boku wa no tensai = I am a genius

Onegai = Please!

Sou = I see…

------------------------------

"Oi! Hanamichi! Over here!"

Sakuragi turned his head and saw Yohei and the gang trailing closely behind him. As if it were input into his system, he stopped and waited for them to catch up. It was an ordinary late summer's morning, just like any other. The weather beginning to be a tiny bit more merciful and light breezes playing with loose strands of hair. That reminded him, his now short haircut gave him no hair to be blown across his face and tickle him. Sad. But there was no thick globs of gel being used either. All the better, saves some cash.

"Hey Sakuragi! Saw your outstanding performance yesterday. You looked way too good," complimented Toma as he slapped him on the back.

"Hn. Some outstanding performance. He practically almost gave the ball away by missing the hoop so many times," a voice from nowhere rang out.

"NANI?"

The flaming redhead spun around to come face-to-face with the overall ever-so-calm expression of Miyagi's. The latter smirked. A hint of blue hair could clearly be seen behind him as Mitsui, too, appeared out of nowhere and joined them. "Oi, Sakuragi! Not bad for a first-timer," he clapped his junior on the back.

"Ahahaha," he laughed as he scratched the back of his head. "What can I say? Boku wa no tensai!"

"Hai, hai. Sakuragi no tensai!" chorused his four friends. This only caused his ego to inflate more as he laughed louder and joined in with them, leaving his other two teammates rolling their eyes and shrugging their shoulders.

*WHAM* A fist landed itself on his head. And a great big pinkish lumped formed itself, protruding from the sea of red.

"Woi! Don't get over your head!" A voice boomed.

"Gori…you…" he stopped short upon seeing a certain young lady with two of her friends, chatting merrily and following her brother. "Heh heh. Haruko-chan, ohayo!"

"Ohayo, Sakuragi-kun," she said, giving a little wave of her hand. "Your performance was excellent yesterday."

"Hehheh. Did you really think so?" he asked, scratching the back of his head, slightly embarrassed.

"Un," said she with a tiny nod of her head.

"Ehehehehehe," he laughed nervously, scratching his head even more.

*Ring ring* *BANG*

A certain jet-black hair boy was flung off his Panasonic bicycle when it had hit the red headed monkey. The poor, now disfigured, bicycle landed just beside the boy whom it had hit.

"ARGH! RUKAWA! TEME, KITSUNE! HOW DARE YOU DEFY A TENSAI IN SUCH A DISGRACEFUL WAY?" the victim barked.

The offender, however, was not interested in any way whatsoever that he had just smashed his teammate. His fangirls came running up to assist him as another group of them reprimanded Sakuragi harshly for being in the way and injuring Rukawa so badly.

Yep, it was just like any other day in Shohoku high.

The clear blue sky and light breeze seemed to welcome Mr Watanabe and Yukiko as they stepped out of the train, bags planted on the ground beside them. It had been a long and exhausting for the two and all they wanted to do now was to move into their new and hopefully temporary home and have a peaceful nap.

But first, they would have to wait for someone to pick them up. Their train had left slightly earlier than scheduled, so the awaited person would probably take a while before coming.

It's bound to be much safer here thought Mr Watanabe as he looked over to his own daughter. Especially with **him** around…

"Oi! Yuki-chan! Over here!"

Both heads turned to see a young man running towards them, waving his hand in the air. He stopped upon reaching them and bent over to pick up their baggage. "Good to see you again," he smiled. 

"Aa. It's been a long time since we've last seen each other," agreed Yukiko. The strong rays from the sun brought the brown of his hair out even more and his fair skin matched hers pretty well. Just like Rukawa thought Yukiko as she smiled back.

He carried their bags to a waiting taxi and dumped them into the boot. The taxi driver inside did not seem rushed in any way at all and told **him** to take his time. Obviously, **he** was well known in these parts. All the better for them, then. Mr Watanabe took over the front seat as she slid into the back seat with **him**. 

They journey was rather eventful as they discussed what had happened in their lived so far. The roads had rather smooth traffic, but the insects were not watching where they were going today. Yukiko counted the bugs one by one as they splat themselves onto the windowpane of the moving car. Her dad thought that was a disgusting thing to do as the taxi driver and **he** laughed along at her childishness. 

The drive did not last for very long, especially since **he** lived ever so close to the train station. The house **he** and **his** mother lived in was considered luxurious. There was plenty of space to spare. The entire house itself was nearly twice the size of Yukiko's own. 

She was not all that surprised at the magnificence of the building. 

No, not at all.

After all, she had been here too many times to be able to forget how everything was. Even the pictures upon the mantlepiece remained untouched.

**He** carried in the their baggage with much ease. And somewhere in the distance, **his** mother called out.

"Kenji! Nota-chibi has made a mess again!"

Fujima Kenji sighed. His little puppy, adopted only a few weeks ago, had already been causing so much trouble. His mother had been reluctant at first, but gave both him and the dog a chance. Now, if Nota-chibi was going to play a fool, the poor puppy was most definitely not going to be able to stay in house.

Yukiko quirked a brow at him. "Nota-chibi?"

Even her father's interest was piqued.

He had not the time to explain when a white puppy pounced upon him and began licking his face enthusiastically. The black patch on its eye made it look more adorable. Dalmatians were ever so rare.

"Wahh! Kawaii!" The girl reached for the dog, which let itself be admired by this unknown stranger. It licked her face too, as though she were Fujima himself. 

Fujima shrugged and ran his fingers through his hair. Like what his mother had just announced, he had a bit of a job to do. All because of that little fellow there. 

Mr. Watanabe smiled apologetically back at him.

"I suppose Kikuno prepared the necessary?" asked he, lifting the baggage, as though ready to move in.

"Iya. I have not told Mom yet. Sumimasen, ne, I believe I have some business to do." He bowed to Mr. Watanabe, and took the dog (much to Yukiko's displeasure) out of her hands. 

Nota-chibi was to have a spanking. One for being such a baka of a dog that he was. Two for ever choosing Fujima as his master.

Fujima left his guests in the main hall. They would know how to make their way about. More than not, they came about for the holidays. Mr. Watanabe was always pleased to see him, Fujima was more interested in Yukiko. Which reminded him, the girl had not yet had a proper introduction to little Nota-chibi here. It had been two months or so.

He was glad for the dog now. As much as Nota-chibi had his faults and flaws, he had his good uses to. Like to cheer Yukiko up. She had not been looking entirely overjoyed just now.

As he passed the kitchen, he told his mother that Yukiko and her father had arrived. She nearly toppled over at how late he was, and passed a scolding for not letting her know earlier. He grinned back at her and made his way to the balcony.

When he saw the "mess" little puppy dog had made, a massive sweatdrop appeared over his head. He gave a Look at Nota-chibi, who whimpered under it. The dog pawed at Fujima, gazing in the opposite direction. But its master claimed a tighter hold and brought down one firm whack on its rear.

Nota-chibi howled.

Fujima was no fool to fall for this. A grim line replaced his lips as he surveyed the area yet again.

Clearing puppy poo was no mean feat, and he was going to make little doggy learn that.

Fujima Kikuno said sorry for the trillionth time. If only that son of hers had told her earlier that there were guests over, and that was why she had not got rooms ready, dinner made. She apologized yet once more.

Watanabe Shiro had to prevent her from bowing again. He smiled back at her, "Iya, daijoubu, Kikuno. It's not important."

Yukiko and Kenji had already made themselves attached with the food. Sure, they had not touched it yet, but the hungry looks in their eyes said a lot more.

Nota-chan had been locked up in his little dog pen as punishment for his earlier masterpiece, not at all appreciated.

Dinner was simple and plain. A bowl of rice each with dishes of vegetables and fish. How ordinary. But none complained as they broke separated their chopsticks and each said a loud "Itadakimasu!" Kikuno was able to make simple food like sushi a creation. A work of art. In other terms, delicious food.

Yukiko complimented her time and time again. The girl was a sweet blessing. Pity they did not live in the Fujima household. Kikuno would have loved the extra female company around. Inwardly, she smirked. So would Kenji. Always eager to please the girl, the boy was.

"So, Yuki-chan," she began, "how has life been."

Sure, it was small talk. But at least it started conversation.

The girl shrugged. "The same. Changes here and there."

"Met anyone new?" 

Kenji scowled across the table at his mother. What kind of question was that?

The girl smiled this time. "Yes," she said gently. "I got some more friends. Fleeting, yes. But all the same."

Kikuno gave smiled mysteriously. She knew the girl very well. Well enough to know what this could possibly mean. She gave an all-knowing look and pestered her junior. "Is it a boy?"

Yukiko nearly jumped. "Ah?"

The girl pretended to be baffled and blinked. If her mission had been to avoid suspicion on that particular topic, she failed. A reddish tinge that fell across her face gave her away at once.

"Who is it?" asked Kenji, curiously.

Shiro continued eating and showed no interest whatsoever. All of a sudden, the vegetables looked very inviting.

Yukiko picked at some fish and chewed on it pettily. 

"Basketball is a fabulous sport, isn't it?"

There always seemed a void in the room now. 

The seat beside felt so…lifeless without a presence.

He did not know exactly how to phrase it.

He…missed her…?

Would that be it?

Rukawa penned down a series of answers. The math test was a passé, even if he had not been paying attention in class throughout the topic. He took half the time to finish up the questions and looked about, trying to find something of interest.

Sleeping did not help.

Even dreaming seemed too much a chore now.

When he dreamed, the same one kept coming back to haunt him.

Loneliness.

Everyone was gone.

In an instant.

Like a passing breeze.

His mother.

His dear, kind mother.

He had never seen his father. 

He had never known his father.

His sister.

His precious sister.

Barely ten.

Gone.

Everyone had left.

Why?

He did not know.

Nobody told him.

Was it his fault?

No.

Was it the doing of someone else then?

No.

So what?

_You're…you would not understand… _

Understand what? 

No one would say. 

Can somebody tell me then? I'm sixteen. What's there not to understand?

_The world is one heck of a complicated place, Kaede. Don't get yourself involved in the kinda shit your dad did. Now your mom had gotta pay. _

What did she have to pay?

Where is she?

_I know you've never seen him before. Be glad you never did. He's an ass, that's for sure. He don't care about anyone, anywhere. Selfish fool who cares only for himself, I tell you. _

Is it wrong to be selfish?

_Yannoe, I'm greatly ashamed to share the same blood as him. But you don't understand doya. I'm just uttering crap, ain't I? But mark my words, you dun wanna meet him. He's a screwed up man. No, wait. He doesn't even deserve to be called a man. _

_You'll be a good man when you grow up, now, wontcha?_

How do you define a man?

_Take care of the ladies. They need the protection. _

Why?

_You'll be star next time. I can see it in your eyes. Bright, intense. Just like your mom's. You'll be superstar, that's what you'll be. A superstar. Mebbe in the basketball league. _

I don't want to be a superstar! I want the answers!

_Megumi was one lady. An unbelievable one. If she hadn't fallen hard for your dad, she woulda been mine. You remember this, boy, when you meeta real lady, grab the chance. Dun lettit pass by like I did. Dun waste a crap of a second. Dun be chicken._

_Your sista coulda been juz like Megumi, if only…if only…_

If only what?

What do you mean by meeting a real lady?

_You look like your dad. No, that's no insult. Your dad's a charmer. I hate to admit it, but yes. Looks attract. That's the kinda crap this world gives ya. All crap and nonsense. _

What are you trying to say? 

Tell me. 

I need to know.

_Don't ever think you're alone, Kaede. Megumi, your sis Kaoru and that worthless piece of shit may be gone, but dun let that think you're by yourself. Never, you hear? Up there, always watching over, watching your every move. _

Who's up there?

Why me? Why is it watching me?

_Watches me too. Don't pick up my potty mouth. I've grown to it, can't gerrid of it now. Too late. But the moment you start talkin' like that, I'll spank you, right here, on the rump. _

Stop talking in circles! Tell me what I want to hear! 

I want to hear the truth!

_You ain't don't want the truth. Yeah, sure, it's good and all. But it stings sometimes. When you finally learn what happened, you'll wanta kill your dad. Kill him, I say. Nothing less than that. He's a heartless monster. Don't follow in his footsteps. Never been a worse 'xample. Don't get his ways. _

What did he do?

_Just remember. All ya needta know is that the Almighty sees. You dun needta avenge your mom and sis. They ain't dun need the avenging. They wouldn't want it anyhow. Remember, they'll hate the blood on your hands, so keep 'em clean. Clean of sin, of blood. You dun wanta disappoint them now, do ya? _

Of course I don't. But I want to know. 

I want to know everything.

_It's not as simple as that. Lotsa things ain't explainable, see? Sometimes, stuff's too messy and complicated. _

So tell me! See if I can't understand!

Tell me! 

Onegai!

Onegai. 

I want to know.

I need to know.

Uncle…

_Shit! He's got ta me now. Din take him all too long. Thot he'd gone, apparently not. That…I won't say it. It's no good for your young ears to hear. Your dad's still about, alive and running. You stay away from him. He'll only bring more hurt, you hear? _

_Don't cry! Don't cry! Kaede! Listen! You cry one more time and I'll hit you! Good, good boy. There, men dun cry now, do they? You keep that heart of yours alive, boy. It's a good heart, untouched by your dad. Listen, you go keep the apartment, alright? From now on, you're the rightful owner. Dun worry about a thing. The neighbour will take care of ya for awhile. I cleared up my will already. My time's up boy, that ain't no mistake. I won't hear of you gettin' into trouble now. You grow up to be a good man. Be a superstar. Pride me, pride your mom and sis. Pride your dad if ya wanta. It's all upta you. You be a good boy now._

_I tellya this. I've been bad to hate ya dad like that. But he's forgiven, so you forgive him too. Blinded. The poor kid's blinded. I wish he hadn't hit me so I could give him one good slap and tell him he's wrong, but that ain't the case. Regrets always come too late, dun they? You tell him he's one forgiven sinner if ya meet him, but dun let him influence you. He ain't good, but neither am I._

_Hate's such a strong word. So is love. But the latter is always greater. Always. Hatred kills. Love heals. See the difference? Never hate people. Never hate yourself. Never hate anything. Does nothing good, it dun. You show the world, Kaede. You show 'em all._

_You've gotta good life ahead of you. Juz never stray away. Remember what I toldya. And…and…_

And what? 

And what!

_We're sorry. The wound was too deep. Not that such a young dear could understand. He's gone. _

You never told me. 

You went away too.

How could you say I'll never be alone?

YOU WENT AWAY TOO!

Everyone's gone…

_Up there, always watching over, watching your every move. _

I wish it were all so easy…

Why does everyone have to go?

Is it Dad's fault again?

Did he do something?

Or is it just that I'm cursed?

_No, you one special kid. One in a million. Dun care what other people say about ya. As long as your heart tells you it's right, it's right. You're blessed. Tremendously. I know. _

How come you know and I don't?

Tell me…

Tell me why she's gone too?

Did I do something again?

_Don't let your heart harden because of this. Locked feelings and emotions never do no good. But if it's undesirable, better keep 'em shut tight away from you. _

Is that what I did wrong?

Tell me… 

Come back...

Come back and tell me…

The sun had already made it's glorious descent into the horizon. Most of the people about had already gone to sleep, awaiting a new day to come along and wake them up from peaceful slumber. Then the entire process would start again. The children off to school. Fathers and some mothers out to work. Homework would be received, workload increased.

That was life. 

How sad. 

Fujima Kikuno smiled wryly at the thought. 

She was one of those mothers who would have to go to work. She had no choice, even if her guest was willing to lend a hand. Watannabe Shiro was a good man. One that would even transfer work for his daughter. 

Event though they had never pass a word about it before, she knew. Perhaps it was female instincts that told her so. But even men could tell the reason easily. What they saw was more than enough to tell her. 

Yukiko was a pretty child. Beautiful girl. Extravagant lady. 

And such a protective man like Shiro would not waste a second to put her out of harm, both she and Kenji understood that well.

A soft breeze blew across, dancing with some loose strands of her hair. The balcony which she sat upon was her own thinking place. A quiet reserve from the worries of the world. Evenings were always pleasant to spend here. Kenji would be studying in his room or playing with that new puppy he brought home, and she would be here, knitting or reading or just relaxing. And sometimes, a rare few sometimes, Kenji would come up and have a mother-son talk with her.

Close parent-child relationships were not common. Even with Kenji, she was not all that close. Boys were boys, and boys preferred male company, being around with their own kind.

She let out a light sigh and continued reading her novel by a small lamp. 

"Um, can I join you?" The partially opened sliding glass doors revealed the meek face of Yukiko. The girl was peering through the small gap such that only half her face and the hand that rested upon the door could be seen.

"Yuki-chan? Yes, sure, why not?" She moved over a little to give some space for the girl. The comfortable cushions which she had brought along to support her back was then evenly shared between the two.

Yukiko snuggled up next to the woman. Kikuno put her book aside, like she always did whenever Kenji came to chat with her.

"Something bothering you?" It was really more a statement than a question.

"Un."

Kikuno placed an arm over the girl's shoulders and pulled her closer. It had always been a consoling kind of action, but Yukiko did not seem to mind it.

"What is it?" she asked, motherly affection in her eyes.

"Dunno." Yukiko was gazing up at the moon. It was a crescent tonight, like a Chesire cat's smile – grinning, taunting.

Somewhere in the other town, he was watching that same moon too…right?

She snuggled up beside the woman even more so. Her motherly scent of freshly washed laundry and kitchen aroma's were alluring…to Yukiko, of course.

"Mom?"

Kikuno blinked. 

Shiro had never really encouraged Yukiko to call her that anymore.

But it felt a lot more natural.

To have her own daughter acknowledge her as mother, why not?

And the best part was, it was purely out of her own will.

"Mm?"

"Why did you leave Dad?"

What a curious question.

Then again, the children had never really known.

"It's a complicated matter, Yuki-chan. Really," she added when she noticed the disbelieving look in Yukiko's eyes.

"So why is Kenji with you and me with Dad?"

Another curious question. Almost ridiculous, this one was. Who would want to know the answer?

"I don't know all too well myself. That was just the outcome…"

"But…you two could have made out a deal, right? I mean, Kenji with Dad and me with you…" Yukiko's eyes never left the bright moon.

"You ask a lot of questions, Yuki-chan," Kikuno laughed. "It's really a crazy business, but it doesn't matter all that much anymore, does it?"

The girl didn't answer. She just let out a halfhearted sigh.

"What is it that you really wanted to come and talk to me about?" she asked again. After a moment with absolutely no response, she made a guess, "Is it that boy?"

"Huh?" The girl was brought out of her reverie.

Kikuno smirked. "Bingo. Who is he?"

"Kaede. Rukawa Kaede…" Yukiko buried her face in her mother's shoulder.

"Rukawa?" Where had she heard it before?

"Mm," the girl murmured.

"What's he like?" Exactly like how a mother should be. Nosy, but inwardly greatly concerned.

"Strong. Smart. Confident…but hidden from the world," came the muffled reply.

Kikuno tried to decipher what the last bit meant for a while, but brushed it aside to ponder on later. 

"What's he look like?" 

A general concern.

Which mother would want to see her daughter out with a…strange-looking person.

Kikuno could have scolded herself though.

She was the one who once told Yukiko that looks were not all that mattered in this world.

She was surprised when Yukiko laughed.

"Yuki-chan?"

"He…looks like me."

"Oh…"

A silence settled.

"You like him?" Kikuno finally asked.

"Mebbe…" she buried her face further into her mother's shoulder. It wasn't the most comfortable place in the world, but it brought warmth to her. She felt a lot better whenever she did that.

"Why?" A single word that demanded all explanation. Preposterous!

"Do you need a reason to like somebody?"

Do they?

"I suppose. I mean, there must be certain qualities which…attracts you."

"I dunno…" Yukiko thought a moment. "I…mebbe…it's because…well…ah, I dunno…"

"Sou…"

"Mm."

Upstairs, Kenji had already retired for the night. The light clicked shut.

"Mom?"

"Hm?"

"This really sucks…"

-----------------------------------

Okie…like Yukiko said, this really sucks.

Insight into Rukawa's mysterious and unexplained past…hehz, liked that part…

How come Fujima and Yukiko are related?…I dunno…juz wanted to include him…mebbe Hanagata and the rest of the Shoyo team will show up too…

Ah well…gotta go sleep…midnight already…

©Copyrighted by JadOo Enterprises 2002


	6. Endurance

**Melting Ice**

_Chapter six: Endurance_

Disclaimer: Do I really hafta write this crap all over again?

Okay, so I know some people disapprove of Fujima being Yukiko's brother. Actually, she should be Rukawa's sister. *shrug* oh well. Not my problem, I'm the writer…

Translations:

Hajimemashite. Watashiwa Watanabe Yukiko desu. = We meet for the first time. I am Watanabe Yukiko. ( I think…got the entire phrase out of my friend's Jap textbook.)

Sensei = teacher (kinda obvious right?)

Gambatte ne = All the best

Domo arigatou = thank you

Bento = Japanese lunchboxes (?)

Koibito = lover *umph*

Imouto = little sister

-------------------------------

A pin dropped somewhere in the classroom.

Mouths gaped.

Eyes stared.

Aquamarine orbs blinked.

A voice broke through the silence.

"This is my sister, please be kind to her. If you're not, well…*shrug* consequences."

"Hajimemashite. Watashiwa Watanabe Yukiko desu."

Whispers.

"They don't look like blood-relatives…"

"What's up with the different surnames…"

"Check that out…"

"Woah…"

"Strange name…"

"Hmph, she doesn't come an inch near my beauty…"

"Mebbe Fujima-sempai is using the sibling thing up as a cover up…you know what I mean?"

"No way…how could **anyone** like her?"

"Fujima sure seems serious about the consequences part…"

"*snort* What's he gonna do? Throw a basketball in our faces?"

"Hey, quit it, Fujima-sempai's glaring…"

"Staring, you mean. Staring at me…"

Clearing of throat.

"If you don't mind, Fujima-san, lessons began ten minutes ago. What is the meaning of escorting her into class?"

A casual, harmless shrug.

"I just thought it was better this way. Anyhow, Saitou-sensei gave me permission."

An uncertain response.

"Ano…if you don't like it…I can always leave now…"

Apologetic shake of head.

"Iie. Not a problem at all, Watanabe-san. Fujima, back to your class now."

Bowing.

"Hai, sensei."

With that, Fujima left the classroom. 

Yukiko remained in the front. She did not like the looks she was getting. Some were of pure jealously, some leered, and some just gave her the creeps. 

Shohoku was 100% better than this place.

And I had though Kenji was in a decent school. Or at least, somewhere near Shohoku…

The students, apparently, were not the slightest bit interested in her. Well, the girls were more interested in her brother. She sat down at an empty seat beside a girl with tinted brown hair. The girl ignored her and moved away by an inch.

Why was she here again? 

~ Shohoku gym ~

"Listen up!" Akagi's voice boomed, vibrating through the air. "The Inter-High championships are nearing! So I don't want any of you to slack! You hear?!"

"Hai!" the basketball team replied, sharply. 

This was one of those times when Rukawa actually managed to stay awake.

Ayako sighed and sat back down on the bench. The rest could be as enthusiastic as they wanted to, but she was poofed. Firstly, she was wondering exactly where Yukiko had disappeared to; Mr Watanabe's assistance could be put into great use right now. The man had completed his business in this district and handed to them the plan of the Inter-high championships. They knew where it was going to be held and all. Secondly, a great silence seemed to haunt the place ever so often nowadays. Rukawa had not many smartass replies to Sakuragi, Haruko did not come down as often, apart from the cheerleading girls, Akagi was perhaps the only one who made an effort to liven he place.

But it did not work.

It would not work.

And she had a pretty good idea why.

Akagi's voice nearly shattered her eardrums. "We will have many friendly matches with other schools, but don't take them to lightly! Take it as a real game! Out opponents we will meet again in the Inter-High, is that clear!"

"Hai, Captain!"

"Shohoku-u!!!" She watched as they lightened the atmosphere, yelling their lungs out.

Then Akagi led them in their warm ups, running a plenty laps round the gym, quickening and slowing at his every shout.

~ Break ~

The air was thick and hot with the breaths of the basketballers. They had been practicing for thirty minutes non-stop before their captain had finally called for a break. Each grabbed his own water bottle and began emptying its contents down his throat. Even Sakuragi kept his usually large mouth shut.

Miyagi came and sat down beside Ayako, grinning like a fool as he did so. "How did I do?" asked he.

She replied honestly, "Not bad. Looks like you really tired out your junior though. " She cast a look in the direction of one of the juniors who was modestly sitting on a bench, exhausted. If it had been Sakuragi, the redhead would probably be sprawled in the floor. Mitsui did go a little harsh on the tensai-wannabe; his shirt was drenched in sweat.

Miyagi smiled back, stars in his eyes. "Really, Aya-chan?"

She nodded, "Aa."

Ayako got up from beside him, partly because he was getting a little too close and partly because a certain dark hair boy had caught her attention. She strode over to him.

Rukawa was acting like he always did. In his little corner, squeezing out every drop of water that was left in that plastic bottle. But Ayako knew that there was more to that.

"Don't mind if I join you," she said, offering a bottle of mineral water to him.

*Miyagi fumes somewhere in the distance*

He took it graciously, gazing at it melancholic for a second. Yukiko would have been handing out the drinks, if she were still here. He gulped down the water. For some reason, he wished it were an alcoholic drink instead. Then he could drown out everything…

"It's different, isn't it?" She stared away. Rukawa gave a quizzical glance. He had no idea what she was talking about. Or at least, he thought he had no idea.

"I mean, it's different now that Yukiko-chan is gone, isn't it?" She remained staring in that direction, finding sudden interest in the basketball hoop.

He did not answer. She had not expected him to do so. Rukawa was not the kind to voice out his emotions. But she did know that among all of them, he would have been the most affected. Yukiko-chan was after all, closest to him. She should have been given an award for getting that close to such as him.

She took out her notebook, where she recorded every shot by each player. From what she saw, Rukawa was not as focused today as he usually was on other days. It was a lot more than that redhead's no doubt, but the trump card of Shohoku could not afford to behave this way.

She flipped the soft covers of the book shut and looked at him with concern. "I hope you understand that you have got to pull yourself together. Akagi-sempai would talk to you about this if he could, but he's an idiot in these matters. Shohoku's victory is at stake, Rukawa-kun."

He nodded in understanding, almost determined.

Ayako clapped his shoulder. "Gambatte ne, Rukawa-kun. Yukiko-chan would want to see you at your best. I bet she'll be at the championships alongside her father, watching each and every match."

She began to walk back to where Miyagi was, preparing to whap him over the head for the dirty looks he was giving Rukawa.

"Domo arigatou," a deep voice which sounded strangely like Rukawa's said.

She turned on her heel, questioningly. 

"She would want me to say that," he explained, talking strides over to the changing room.

Ayako smiled back at him.

"What's up with you two?"

*WHAP*

A head, which was topped with a bread-like arrangement of hair, grew a red bump.

"That was for the looks," she said haughtily, returning to her seat.

Yukiko fidgeted uneasily.

She was getting a lot of looks from the other students yet again.

She clutched her bento tighter.

"Why are you doing this?" she asked for what seemed like the trillionth time.

Her brother patted her dark hair and rubbed his nose playfully. "'cos it's my job now."

She let out a defeated sigh and tucked some strands of loose hair behind a fair ear. Fujima had appeared at her classroom doorway the instant the recess bell rang, saying that he would accompany her for break. It was not that she did not like it, she just felt a bit uneasy with all the attention they got.

"Don't you have any of your friends whom you want to hang out with?" asked she, trying to throw off her brother.

Fujima shrugged. "You'll get to meet them."

He led her lead the way around the school. She did not know the place all too well, but she seemed to have a good idea where she was going.

A glared darkly at a few boys passing by who were **looking** at Yukiko. This was the reason why he had been sticking to her like a leech the entire day and he intended to carry on doing so. He had full knowledge of the reason why his dad moved over. Something had happened back in the previous school she had attended and now their father was resorting to this. Even though Mr Watanabe had not mentioned a word about Yukiko's coming, Kenji knew.

His sister, like him, had a charm. It was not only the charisma. They were both very good-looking. And her being a, well, her made people tend to take advantage. Yukiko was not as strong as her brother, and had no tricks of self-defense. Thus the need to be protected.

She had found the place she wanted to go to, of course. He was rather taken aback by the place she chose.

The rooftop.

The intense heat of the sun made perspiration trickle down his neck as he followed her to a shaded area. They both then opened their bentos wordlessly.

"Yukiko-chan?" he finally asked whilst chewing on a piece of crabmeat, "why did you come here?"

She kept resolutely silent, daintily biting off some of her sushi.

"It holds a special meaning, huh?" The answer seemed pretty obvious to him. He knew his sister like the back of his hand, like all of his basketball tricks. Through and through, as if the mask she wore were so transparent. She did not need to say anything at all.

She still did not reply, keeping her bento and re-tying her sleek black hair. She looked a lot like his mother. The same jet-black hair. The same fair, milk-white skin. The only similarity that she took on from her father was those aquamarine eyes. Bright, clear and hiding nothing whatsoever. Observant people could see through her easily.

Fujima scratched the back of his head and yawned.

"You should be more tired than me. You barely slept a wink last night," remarked he.

Still nothing.

"Talked to Mom, didn't you?" he cocked his head to the side and gazed at her side profile. She was staring right back into the clouds. "Overheard bits and pieces of it."

"Oh, really?" Finally a response. How long did that take, for three syllables?

"You know, I remember a Rukawa Kaede from somewhere before," he said, racking his brains, trying to remember where he had heard the name before. "Oh yeah," he remembered, "he was the MVP of last year's Inter-Junior-High." 

"Ding ding. Correct. How smart." It was almost monotonous and bored. Very unlike the Yukiko Fujima knew...

"What's up with you anyway, Yukiko-chan? It's getting very annoying, you know?" snapped he.

"It's…nothing. Kenji, maybe you should go and hang out with your friends instead of staying around. I have a sudden urge to strangle something. I won't do that, of course," she added when she saw the look her brother gave her.

"Iya, they'll find me sooner or later." He locked his fingers behind his head and leaned against the cement wall. "It's only a matter of time…"

"Fujima! You here?!" a voice called out. But Fujima did not budge an inch.

A tall, bespectacled senior soon appeared in front of them, beads of sweat rolling down his face.

"There you are," he exclaimed. Then he noticed her and a reddish tinge spread itself across his face. "Su-Sumimasen, Fujima. I did not know…"

"Kenji, who is he?" Yukiko asked curiously. The boy's back was still turned towards them as he made his leave.

"Hanagata Toru, surely you know me better than that," stated Fujima as he leaned further back onto the wall.

"S-sou…I just thought you wanted to have some time alone with your…koibito…"

Yukiko blushed a deep hue of red and her mouth gaped open.

"She is **not** my koibito!" Fujima retorted. "She's my imouto!"

"I-Imouto?" Hanagata turned.

Yukiko face was still red as she ducked behind her brother to cover up the awkwardness.

"But she'd look real good as a girlfriend, wouldn't she?" he added, giving a thoughtful look.

Yukiko punched his arm, which was actually quite a failure since Fujima's was so well-built. "Kenji!"

Fujima ruffled his sister's hair playfully, causing her black hair to come loose, spilling onto her shoulders. Hanagata blushed a deeper red and turned around yet again.

"Hanagata! Why're you turning about so often?" Kenji demanded as he got up. It was not like his team-mate to act like this. He helped Yukiko up too. The girl was a bit upset for she could not find her elastic band.

"Maa," she complained, "now my hair's gonna get in the way…"

Fujima examined her for a minute before finally declaring, "You look a lot prettier when you let your hair down."

Hanagata blushed even more.

"You really think so, Kenji?"

"Would I lie to you?"

"Nope." Fujima narrowed his eyes at his friend. "What's up with you?"

"Nothing," mumbled Hanagata.

Fujima shrugged. "Recess is nearly over. Come on Yukiko-chan, let's get you back to class."

The two basketballers escorted the girl back to class, Fujima giving warning looks at those who stared even more at Yukiko. Her hair down really did attract a lot more attention.

When Yukiko was finally back in her own classroom, Fujima and Hanagata proceeded to their own class.

"Hanagata, you know what?" asked Fujima.

"What is it?" Hanagata deep red face was now gone and replaced by the usual pale skin.

"I think you like my sister."

"Of course I like her! She's your sister!" Hanagata's face turned pinkish.

"No, I mean, you have a crush on my sister," Fujima smiled all-knowingly. There was nothing Hanagata could hide from him. The obviousness showed on his face.

Hanagata said nothing but blushed hotly. He quickened his paces and went straight into their classroom, determined to ignore Fujima for the rest of the day.

Fujima chuckled.

Rukawa found himself banging into something, someone. He landed on the floor, with a strange cushion underneath him. He peered at it. Cushions did not come with red hair, did they?

"Foul! That was a foul! Where's the whistle?!" screamed the cushion. Rukawa immediately got up.

Sakuragi glared angrily at Ayako, who blinked. "Ayako-san! Are you refereeing the game or not! Teme…when Kitsune fouls, he gets let off, how unfair is that."

*WHAM*

Miyagi's fist landed on top of the sea of red. "Watch how you speak to Aya-chan, Hanamichi."

"Do ahou," mumbled Rukawa as he picked up the ball and began bouncing it on the gym floor.

"Well?" demanded Sakuragi, "Where's the whistle?"

Ayako blinked again and reached for the whistle, but Yasuda had already called the shots.

"Good," growled Sakuragi, "just make sure the referees have no favourites."

"Be quiet, ahou," Rukawa scowled darkly.

"You have a problem, Kitsune? Just because the world doesn't revolve around you and nothing goes the way you want it to? Don't think that you can cheat your way out of things," Sakuragi sneered. He should not have done that; it only aggravated Rukawa even more.

Rukawa Kaede grabbed him by the scruff of his shirt neck and lifted him high in the air. Sakuragi, fully understanding what it meant, kicked Rukawa. And a fight broke out.

"Sto-stop it!" yelled Ayako as she dashed over to break up the two. The rest of the team came over as well. Even Akagi's fists did not help very much.

But it was soon stopped by Rukawa. He stopped throwing hits and walked right away from Sakuragi and the rest of the team. He was headed for the gym exit, and nobody stopped him; they were either staring questioningly or struggling to hold back an enraged Sakuragi.

Even outside the gym, separated from that highly annoying and egoistic fool, Rukawa had no peace.

Since Yukiko had left, the cheerleaders took their cue to began chasing after him again. Here, out in the open, they bothered him the most. It was amazing that they did not know when to stop. They did not know that it was better to stop, especially when Rukawa was in no good mood.

He turned his head and gave them a very dark scowl, but still they did not get the idea. Rukawa did not want to resort to violence on girls. No only was it an ungentlemanly thing to do, such action would disappoint Yukiko too. So he stayed there ignoring them.

When did his head become so clouded up that he would even near such an ahou like that stupid monkey?

Someone came and sat down beside him.

It was Anzai-sensei.

Rukawa had never noticed exactly how old the man was. Actually, he did not care. But now, with Anzai-sensei seated so near to him, he could see the multiple creases upon his forehead, the snow-white hair and deep wrinkles.

The fangirls almost immediately cleared off. An old man coming and sitting down beside their idol was not expected, and it made them think twice.

"Time passes so fast, Rukawa. A few months and now even an amateur like Sakuragi has improved so much," he said in his old, tired voice.

Rukawa did not say anything.

"I understand how you feel," he continued, "like something precious has been snatched away from you, because of you."

Rukawa stared back at the man. How could he have known that he had spilled Yukiko's secret? How could he have known that he had broken his promise to Yukiko?

Anzai-sensei only laughed his mysterious laugh, "Ohoho. Do not let it distract you. You will see her again. It just takes time."

The old man then got up from and left his place beside Rukawa. Inside the gym, the practice had already restarted – without Rukawa around.

Rukawa stared into the never-ending stretch of blue sky.

Why do I fret so much over it…?

Is it my fault once again?

Why does her absence affect me so much?

What hold has she over me?

Will she really come back?

Damn, why am I even thinking so much?

Questions.

There never seemed to be a final answer that would end all of them. After one had been solved, a new problem would arise and once again turn his world upside down. Life was not so easy after all.

The world is one heck of a complicated place, Kaede. 

His uncle was right after all.

I am sure that we will meet again one day. Let's work hard and see each other in Tokyo University, ne? 

Maybe this little motivation was all he needed to get through…all of this.

Tokyo University…a school that only accepts the best…

The best scholars, the best students, and of course…the best sportsmen. 

Meaning the best basketball player.

Which was exactly what he had been aiming for from the very beginning.

-------------------------------

Special thanx: To all my reviewers. ^o^

Phew…done with this chapter. Actually, I have got no idea what I'm writing…so confusing!

Hanagata is another one who has fallen for Yukiko. *hehhehheh* Quite amusing to see him in this kinda light…^________^

Rukawa picking a fight with Sakuragi, not the other way round…really wished they could have carried on though… Sumen ne to all Sakuragi fans, I don't so happen to like the guy…¬_¬

©Copyrighted by JadOo Enterprises 2002


	7. Wrong Impression

  


**Melting Ice**

_Chapter seven: Wrong Impression_

Disclaimer: Yeah yeah yeah. So SlamDunk does not belong to me at all…sad ain't it. I only wish it were truly mine, but alas, tis only a wish. *sigh*

Konnichiwa minna-san! Haven't been writing for sometime coz got a bit of writer's block. Also partly because I was watching the World Cup *sheepish*. Japan's out…*sniff* I think the coach shouldn't have taken Inamoto out…

Oh well…on with the story…

Translations:

Kitsune = Fox (Sakuragi's name for Rukawa)

Sumen ne = I'm sorry (in an 'excuse me' sense) 

Do ahou = It's a rude word. Insulting name-calling. (Rukawa's pet name for anybody that he doesn't particularly like)

Doushta? = What's wrong? (A concerned question… dunno the exact translation tho…)

Ohayou, minna = Good morning, everybody

'tousan = Father (short for Otousan)

Itte Itte = I guess that means 'Go Go!'

--------------------------------

"Hurry up! Gather here!" Ayako waved her white fan exasperatedly. They were taking too long to get ready.

One by one, the members of the Shohoku team gathered where their manageress and captain was, mumbling apologies here and there. Under the order of Akagi, they got into a single file, so as to let their manageress check if all were present.

Apparently, that wasn't the case.

"Where's Rukawa?!" shouted Akagi as he scanned the team again.

"That Kitsune is probably sleeping his head off again." Sakuragi Hanamichi had just walked into the gym when Akagi stormed up to him. Angrily, his captain whapped him hard on the head. Ayako giving him the exact same treatment (only with use of a fan) soon after.

"Hanamichi, you're no better. What's the meaning of coming in this late?"

"Oi oi. Kitsune is even later than me!" complained the redhead as he rubbed the two red bumps camouflaging upon his head. It didn't really help when he received yet another bump. Rukawa was already in line with the rest when he turned about to try and find the culprit.

"Sumen ne, I had a bit of trouble getting out of my house." Ayako quirked a brow but said nothing more. The captain however, graciously spared him by giving him a short but stern lecture never to do that again.

Rukawa shrugged. He wasn't lying. He really **did** have a bit of a problem getting out of his house and it wasn't his fault. He had simply forgotten to replace the key and was unable to find it this morning. The first thought that came to mind was maybe Yukiko had taken it again. It took him a full ten minutes to realize that she wasn't around anymore and get to finding the key. Then his neighbour had inconsiderately left out some potted plants which blocked the stairway, refusing access or exit for Rukawa and his bike.

Sakuragi, not entirely pleased with the fact that he was unfairly treated, grumbled harshly. Making more noise would only provoke more injury. That was the way with their captain. How sad. Especially for troublemakers (-_-;;) like him. Glaring at Rukawa, who ignored him, he fell wordlessly into line.

"Alright," boomed Akagi's voice as he addressed his teammates, "our friendly match isn't going to be so friendly after all! (?) We have a tough opponent ahead of us, one of the best teams. But we are determined to beat the best and be the best!"

"YEA!!!" 

*Rukawa sighs inaudibly, only to be whacked by Ayako*

*Sakuragi snickers. This doesn't go unnoticed by Akagi, who gives him a swift punch on the head*

*Mitsui stifles a smile, and is then nudged real hard in the ribs by Miyagi*

*Mitsui returns Miyagi's nudge with a painful elbow*

*Hell breaks loose…*

"WHAT WASSAT FOR?"

"YOU NUDGED ME FIRST!!"

*sigh* "Do ahou…"

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!"

"OWWWW! Aya-chan, Mitsui has given me bad injury. Have pity for your darling…" *wince*

*whap* "Darling my foot!"

"Sakuragi, watch where you're going!"

"Oi, Yasuda! It's you're fault that you were in the way!"

"EVERYBODY! SHUT UP!!!"

*whap (x the number of Shohoku people minus Akagi and Ayako)*

*moans and groans*

An infuriated Akagi stormed to the front of the now recollected line and yelled at all of them to play their best or else…

With that, Shohoku left the their own gym to play a 'friendly' match against the second best team in the whole of the Kanagawa prefecture – Shoyo.

Fujima Kenji regained balance just in time as his shoelaces came undone once again. Something was up and his shoelaces were reacting quite strangely to it. Sighing, he bent down and tied it laboriously.

"Kenji, doushta?" his concerned sister asked as she squatted down beside him. He grinned back up at her, assuring her that there was nothing wrong.

It was a very peaceful Saturday morning and Fujima and Yukiko were making their way to school, each for totally different reasons. Being the studious girl that she was, Yukiko was naturally going there to complete a project. Fujima was there for a competition. A match, rather.

The breeze was strangely calming as they made their way to school on the gravel path which cut through a park. Yukiko hummed a happy tune as she strolled beside her brother. Fujima reached over and messed her hair a little.

"Oi!"

He grinned brightly. If anything, the innocence of his sister shone out like the sun. Her hair as down today, not up in her usual, strict ponytail. Nah, she decided to let loose a bit. It felt down like a waterfall past her shoulders. Sleek black and slightly rumpled by the wind. Actually, he had said that they were going to have a nice match that day, and that maybe if she let her hair down, she might just distract the players. On which side, Fujima didn't dare to guess.

The Shoyo team had already met his sister. How could they nor? With Fujima constantly with her, it was impossible not to meet her. They would do so on their own accord anyway.

"So you think you guys will be able to win?" she asked, letting her portfolio hang loosely from her fingertips.

"Of course!" He let a cocky grin slide past his lips. It was rather difficult to imagine them losing. It was **them**: Shoyo, the best behind Kainan. But as soon as Yukiko looked away, Fujima's brows furrowed into a crease.

If Yukiko had known who they were playing against today, maybe she wouldn't have let down her hair or even come. And Fujima couldn't really say if they were going to win. There were new talents in Shohoku this year, he heard, and he was just about to meet them. Other than Akagi Takenori, the four other team members were relatively unknown to him. Well, other than one…

Rukawa Kaede – Shohoku's current ace. Fujima didn't really know what to make of him. All his sister would tell him was that the guy was really gifted. 

"Kenji! Kenji!" A hand waving furiously in front of his face made him blink. He caught it; it was making him dizzy. "We're here already," Yukiko announced.

Indeed, they had reached the gates of Shoyo High.School. Dressed in their school uniforms, bags at their feet were the rest of the Shoyo Basketball team players. Hanagata Toru cleared his throat and looked away, causing a bright grin to plaster itself to Fujima's face. Hasegawa Kazushi, Tagano Shoichi, Nagano Mitsuru and Ito Toku were leaning casually against the wall, waiting. 

Fujima waved to them then jogged up to them. Yukiko followed suit. "Ohayou, minna," she smiled, bowing as a greeting. They each responded with their own greeting. It was not a good thing to ignore Fujima's sister.

"I'll be off then, Kenji," she said before leaving the team and running up into the hallways of her new school.

Tagano eyed his captain warily after watching the girl run happily away from them. "Looks like you haven't told her, have you, Fujima?"

"Aa…I think she'll find out for herself anyway. I don't know which is better – telling her or not." Fujima Kenji sighed. "Shohoku…I hope nothing happens. 'tousan will be there as well…"

"ITTE ITTE SHOYO!!"

"SHOHOKU! SHOHOKU!"

The crowds were screaming enthusiastically as each side of the gym cheered for their own schools. They were certainly making a racket. The air thick with excitement, the players on the court below had adrenaline pumping through their blood.

Mitsui dribbled the ball, running towards the net, only to be stopped by those tall Shoyo players. Darting to the right a little, he made sure the opponent followed before throwing the ball to his left, where Miyagi was open and waiting. The point guard wasted no time in shooting the ball into the net.

Shouts of delight rewarded the Shohoku player as he returned on court. He eyed the player in green, seated casually on the Shoyo bench. This person, as they all knew, was the coach, captain and ace point guard in the entire Shoyo team. Tauntingly, he motioned for Fujima to come forward. The brunet only smiled and leant forward. This boy didn't know the trouble he was asking for.

Miyagi was not able to hold such a communication with Fujima for long as the game had already started once again. He snatched the ball from a rather distracted Hasegawa and dribbled the ball till he was blocked. He grabbed the ball and attempted to jump, then threw it behind him into Rukawa's awaiting hands. His junior sped past all other defending players, using fakes wherever useful, and slammed the ball straight into the hoop.

Fujima watched from his bench, interestedly. One was in Rukawa. The other was in that short point guard who was constantly trying to get him into the court. Fujima snorted. He intended to stay there until he was really needed. As far as he could see, his team didn't need any help from him. Why exhaust himself? He had full trust in his teammates.

Rukawa was doing very well. Like what Yukiko had said, he was a very good player. Gifted indeed. He would not mind having the boy on his team if he ever planned to transfer. Rukawa's movements were very swift, he didn't take the time to think; everything he did was as though it were his natural instinct. Fujima watched, amusedly. Rukawa was stumping his teammates once again as he bounce the ball past all of them. It was such a disappointment when Hanagata hit away the ball.

The ball rolled out past the white lines. It was now Shohoku's ball.

Rukawa ran to get it, but was stopped short in his footsteps.

A bewildered and clueless girl had stepped into the gym by the main entrance and was not on the stands where she should have been. The basketball stopped at her feet and she picked it up, fingering it. 

The gymnasium was now silent. 

What was going on?

Rukawa watched as the sleek black hair replaced itself on the girl's shoulders while she straightened up. When she had regained full posture, a pair of questioning aquamarine eyes bore back into his.

"Kae-chan," she breathed.

"Yuki-chan," he mumbled.

For a moment, Rukawa couldn't believe his eyes. Why would Yukiko be here? And whatever for? Was this her new school? How much better was Shoyo than Shohoku?

All these questions whirled in his mind as he just stood there, staring at her, blinking only once or twice.

Yukiko was no better. 

She knew she'd meet up with him one day, but never imagined that it could be so soon. Tokyo University was years away and she was real sure that both of them could make it. But this, this sudden meeting shocked her, tremendously.

Back in his seat, Fujima shook his head and gave a low whistle. The unexpected had happened.

Looks like things are gonna take a whirl…

Slowly, he stood up and took off his jacket, immediately catching the attention of the audience, who had been whispering curiously about the two earlier. He patted a very exhausted Ito on the shoulder, the boy understood. Eyebrows rose, some whistles and cheers even came from the Shoyo supporters.

Shoyo's key player was taking on the court.

This, of course, did not go unnoticed by Rukawa and Yukiko.

"Kenji," she whispered when she noticed her brother on court.

Rukawa's eyes slitted. He didn't particularly like the way Yukiko had just said that 'Kenji'. He eyed the Shoyo player warily, feeling somewhat…was he jealous?

Suddenly realizing that she was taking hold of the important object in the whole game and holding everyone back, Yukiko gasped. Fingers fidgeting with the ball, she turned her attention back to Rukawa.

"Here," she said, holding out the orange sphere to him, "the ball."

Nodding his head understandably, Rukawa took the ball and began to walk back on court.

"Um…"

He turned questioningly, spinning the ball on the tip of his index finger.

Was that just to impress her?

Nah he brushed it off, taking it to be a habit of his.

"See you after the game, okay?" she finally said, cocking her head to one side. "Gambatte, Rukawa Kaede."

Just like that, she skipped away to the judges' stand, where her father was seated. He had come down because he had nothing else to do. Partly also because the Shoyo headmaster had invited him down to watch the game.

At the sound of a whistle, the game resumed.

Fujima Kenji stepped out of the showers, refreshed. Quickly, he slipped on his clothes and waited patiently for the rest to finish. They had to go out and wish Shohoku well on their way home.

The game's end had been a rather unsatisfying one.

Shohoku and Shoyo tied.

Well, at least neither of us lost

As he sat on the bench and started packing his things, he pondered on the second half of the match. Well, it was only at the end of the first half that his sister had appeared and caused some changes.

Somehow, things had turned out exactly as he had expected it.

Shohoku was a whole lot more focused after that. Even with him on the court, the battle for who's better than who showed no outcome at all. Strangely, Rukawa was not the only one affected. Even the manageress (what was her name?) had cheered up a whole lot more.

Even though Yukiko was at the table with their father, helping out with judging, it seemed as though her presence was the only thing needed to perk the opposing team out. If she wasn't his sister, Fujima might have demanded that she return to the stands or something which would have kept her out of the sights of the Shohoku team.

He also noticed that his father had somewhat been keeping an eye on Rukawa. Either he was showing great interest in the boy's talents, or it was something totally different.

It made him very curious.

"Fujima, let's go!" Hanagata announced when the entire Shoyo team had finally washed up and were ready to go. Fujima gave his friend a curt nod before zipping up his bag and swinging it over his shoulder.

Outside the room, a very cheery Yukiko was leaning against the wall, waiting for all of them. Fujima smiled at the sight of her. It was rather disappointing to see her hair up again in that tight ponytail.

"Sorry," she mumbled apologetically when she noticed Fujima gazing questioningly at her head, "it got a bit warm, so I put it up."

"Maa, daijoubu."

She walked alongside the team as they made their way to the front steps of Shoyo High – that was where they were to meet Shohoku's team. As they strolled past the stands and past the garden, they made idle chatter, mostly based on the recent game.

Shohoku was not yet there when they reached. Instead, some students were scattered all over the place, undoubtedly discussing the game. Fujima was almost pounced on by all his fangirls and the rest of the Shoyo team were praised by their schoolmates. Though a victory had been expected, a tie was enough for them.

The squeals and high shrilly voices of the girls in green blazers nearly turned Fujima off. Although he was used to this kind of treatment, it didn't mean that he was totally immune to it. It could get irritating at times.

Yukiko watched amusedly. But it wasn't too soon that she didn't get hers.

Seeing that Fujima was distracted for the moment, the Shoyo boys took their chance at her. Some of the Shohoku students recongised her as their old schoolmate and said hi. Although some did go a little further. 

As soon as Fujima was done with listening to all that he can take and accept a million presents and letters, and shrugged away the pesky girls, he got back to work. The boys said their byes and kept their distance a little.

They found space on some benches lining the sides of the pathway that led to the school. Shohoku sure was taking a long time.

Yukiko reached a bag she had with her and revealed a bento. It was wrapped in blue cloth with a tag. "Here," she said, presenting it to him, "Mom passed it to Dad before he left the house. He left a little earlier so now I've got to give this to you. I've already had mine," she added when he asked.

Fujima obliged and offered some to his teammates, who refused to take any.

While munching on his snack, he read the tag that had his mother's handwriting scrawled on it.

_Kenji,_

_ Nota-chibi's made a mess again. I cleaned it up this time because I didn't want it to stink up the place. Oh yes, and one more thing: you're sleeping out of the house until you buy him a dog-pen._

_- Love, Mom._

Fujima sighed.

The Shohoku team was met by an eager Shoyo team when they reached the steps of Shoyo High. Apparently, the other's school's boys were in a hurry to get home soon.

Miyagi did find it strange that Fujima was not about. There were only five of them there; everyone except the ace.

"Has Fujima gone home?" he asked as he shook hands with Ito Toku.

The boy shook his head. "Iya. Fujima-sempai is behind," said he as he released Miyagi's hand and stepped aside, allowing him to see the captain of Shoyo. Miyagi's eyes grew big at the sight he saw. Quickly, he grabbed Ayako and showed her the scene. She gasped and covered her mouth.

Akagi narrowed his eyes at them. "Is something wrong?"

They shook their heads.

"Alright then, we'll be leaving now," the Shoyo boys announced as they said their last goodbyes. As they departed, they greeted their captain and left in a flurry.

It was then that everyone else could see what Miyagi and Ayako had seen.

Seated on a bench at the base of the stairs, under a blossoming Sakura tree, were Fujima and Yukiko. Fujima was digging into a delicious-looking bento whilst Yukiko made chatter. They were laughing at some joke. Well, at least Yukiko was. Fujima did not look particularly pleased. He threw some food at her and pulled her hair-tie. It resulted in a knock on his head with her portfolio.

They were pulled away from their fun when Akagi called out his name. 

Fujima looked up at the towering figure before wrapping up the remains of his snack then rising to shake hands with the Shohoku captain.

"It was a good game," he commented, feeling a more than firm grip from Akagi. One by one, they came up and shook hands with him. Well, except Rukawa, his attention had been diverted to elsewhere.

He looked at her. "Yukiko," was all he could say at that particular moment.

She fidgeted a little and greeted him back, saying a bit more than "Rukawa".

His deep sapphire eyes gazed straight into her own aquamarine orbs. She swallowed hard, feeling a sudden increase in her heartbeat. Her mind raced, thinking of what to say now. She felt a blush creeping up her face and immediately turned away so that he wouldn't see it. Never before had she felt so…uncomfortable around him.

She should have been really happy. She should have. 

But his gaze seemed somewhat accusing, pleading – everything she wanted it not to have.

"Well, I see you two have already met." Shifting his bag, Fujima approached the two of them. Yukiko felt relieved. Fujima extended a hand for Rukawa, the younger boy did not take it, but instead gave Fujima a nod, and…was that a glare? 

"Arigato, Fujima. That was indeed a good match. We'll take leave now," Akagi said, acknowledging him. He gave Yukiko a smile, which was returned a brighter one.

They turned to leave. Rukawa cast one long look at the two before walking away too.

"Matte," a voice suddenly called out. It was Yukiko. "Why, why don't you guys come over for dinner? Ayako-nee and Haruko-chan can help out with making the dinner."

The suggestion sounded good, Ayako accepted it right away.

Shohoku did make a lot of noise over it – they wanted to go home. But their manageress had whipped out her dangerous white fan. What could they say?

"Besides," she added, " it's not like we have school tomorrow or anything."

Everyone else except the key players was allowed to go home. Anzai-sensei laughed his mysterious laugh and herded the rest home.

"So, we ready to go?" Ayako asked, grinning.

"Sure thing," Fujima said as he stepped beside his sister. Upon catching Rukawa's strange look at the two of them, he snaked one arm around Yukiko's waist and grinned smugly. Rukawa gave him a **very** dark look.

"Kenji!" She nudged him in the side, asking him what on earth he was doing. There were some furrowed brows from the others.

Fujima only smiled back down at her, then whispered into her ear, "Don't let them know that you're my sister just yet."

"What? Why?" she whispered back, slightly irritated with him.

"Trust me," he said. Then he tousled her hair and pulled her closer. When he had reached for his bag with his free hand, he answered Ayako's question.

"We're going home."

---------------------------------

Ahhhhhhhh!!! I can't believe I made Fujima seem like her boyfriend all of a sudden. Man! Rukawa sure is jealous (but I don't think he'll admit it).

I'm happy that Brazil won. Satisfied that England scored. Owen scored, rather. His goal was very nice.

My holidays are ending like in two days time. What a pity.

And I just got FFX to play ^.^ Lulu rocks!!! I like her little Moogle doll. Oh yeah, and Seymour sure has that seductive tone while speaking to Yuna *shudders*. It's really freaky.

Oh well! I'll do up the next chapter ASAP. I myself want to see how this is going to turn out.

©Copyrighted by JadOo Enterprises 2002


	8. I Want To Protect Her

**_Melting Ice_**

_Chapter eight: "I want to protect her"_

Disclaimer: Rukawa and his friends don't belong to me. Or rather, I don't belong to them…

AN: Minna gomen! I know I took real long because I had a writer's block in my brain. Couldn't think…and then I didn't feel like writing for a very long time – no inspiration. Oh yeah, I just got started on an RPG with yahoo groups ^^. Yeah. Been watching X the anime, it's really really really cool. I think you guys should watch it. The effects are just great.

I realized that I didn't add in the translation services for the previous chapter…and the format didn't turn out like I wanted it to. Nevermind…here are your translations:

Gambatte: All the best….just something encouraging.

Koibito: Yes, it means lover.

Koi: Short form of koibito. It is also a type of fish…but that's not the point…

Sumen ne: Usually means excuse me. Here it means 'sorry'

Aniki: Elder Brother

Arigato: Thank you

Kitsune: Fox. Sakuragi uses it on Rukawa.

Oyasumi: Good night. Short form of Oyasuminasai.

'Kaasan: Mother. Short for Okaasan.

--------------

The evening sky grew darker as a lone figure sat dejectedly in the Fujima backyard.

Rukawa's thoughts were racing as he kept swinging back and forth in that simple manner. It had only been, what? A week? And everything had…everything had changed. He couldn't exactly say that it was for the better.

He had been sure that they would meet up, soon. But he had defined 'soon' as a year or even more. Perhaps even a couple of months.

And he had thought she would…well, she would still be without someone else.

He had to admit that it was rather selfish of him. 

How could she remain single? Even when they were in school, there were so many boys who would just never leave her alone. She was so likable, so easy to get along with; so friendly, so kind, so cheerful and full of energy that one can hardly ever be depressed when around her. How could she never be in a relationship?

The thing that shocked him the most was that she was with Fujima. Of all people, she had picked Fujima.

Just by looking at the way Fujima treated her made Rukawa pissed. Her flirted with her, pulled her hair loose (which he had to admit made her look even prettier), messed up the hair which she combed so laboriously, childishly threw food at her, and she had so obviously been uncomfortable with his intimacy.

The more he thought about it, the more infuriated he became.

Someone like Fujima Kenji could never deserve her - even if he was captain, coach and ace of the Shoyo team and the best basketball player in the whole world.

He kicked himself higher and higher into the air, each push becoming more and more forceful as he pointed out all of Fujima's flaws. The swing's creaking got louder and louder until it could take it no more. The strained branch broke and dumped the swing Rukawa onto the hard soil very ungraciously. He rolled over just in time to avoid the branch

"Man, I can't believe that Fujima," Miyagi's voice said as he and Mitsui stepped into the backyard for a breather, "did you see the way he was acting towards Yukiko? It's hard to believe that he's a great basketball player. And…man, Rukawa, are you alright?" he asked when he had noticed his teammate on the ground.

Rukawa nodded as he got up and dusted his pants, looking behind is back to scrutinize the damage he had just done.

"Oh, speaking of Fujima, he was just asking for you just now," Mitsui remembered as he addressed Rukawa.

"I wouldn't count on it being anything good," scoffed Miyagi. "He's up to no good. Shoulda seen the look on his face. I've got to be more careful with Ayako now that he's around."

Mitsui shut him up with a nudge. "Anyways, I'm guessing that it must be something important."

Rukawa did his best to hide a grimace as he acknowledged his team members and went off to find his seeker.

Yukiko returned the cloth to the rack when she had finish drying and replacing the last of the utensils. Pushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear, she then proceeded upstairs, where her guests were waiting.

Dinner had passed quietly.

There was no way she could describe how uncomfortable she had felt.

Her brother had been acting real strangely ever since the incident in school. Her mother was giving her a mysterious smile and had even told her "gambatte" before they reached the table. Her father made a plenty lot of clearing throat sounds. Most weird of all was Rukawa frowning at her brother.

She heard a familiar bark and bent over to pick up the spotted dog. Nota-chibi licked her face excitedly and remained contented in her arms. Kenji's dog had been showing great affection to Rukawa earlier. He kept pestering the poor boy and jumped into his lap whenever opportunity knocked. She brought the puppy up with her to the room that Haruko and Ayako would be sleeping in.

"Yukiko-chan~!" A pillow was thrown at her the moment she entered the room. She hit it away with her shoulder and gave Ayako a sterned look. The latter grinned gleefully back at her. She then picked up the object of greeting and shut the door behind her.

Haruko smiled meekly when she joined them on the bed.

"So," Ayako began cheekily, "how has life been? You seem to be getting along well since we last saw you."

"Pretty okay…"

"I see you've gotten yourself a nice partner a well."

"What do you mean?" she asked, letting the puppy loose and hugging the pillow. 

"You don't need to hide it from us~" Ayako taunted as she tickled the dog.

"Un," Haruko agreed. "Fujma seems rather alright for…for a koibito."

Yukiko stared wide-eyed at them. Where on earth had they gotten this idea that…that her brother was her **boyfriend**?!?!?!?!?!?!

"W-wha…th-that… " she spluttered, trying to explain that it really wasn't so without revealing that Kenji was actually her brother. "K-Kenji's not, he's not my koi!" she protested, blushing hard at the possibility of even having one. 

"Oh?" her senior quirked a brow, disbelievingly.

"Ayako-nee!"

"Alright, alright," surrendered Ayako with her hands in the air. "I believe you."

"But," began Haruko, giving her a puzzled look, "but if you two aren't together…then why're you guys acting as if you are?"

"I don't know," she sighed, frustrated as she ran her fingers through her hair. "It's Kenji's little game."

Little game indeed. She wondered if her brother was really trying to let the others get the idea that they were together, or maybe he even had those kind of feelings toward… she brushed the thought far away. They were brother and sister and there was no way in this time and age that her brother could ever like her in **that** kind of way. She knew him too well.

So, then, what **was** his purpose of this funny game? What **exactly **was he trying to do?

"So then," Haruko began in a whisper, "who **is** Fujima?"

"Yeah," agreed Ayako. "And why are you two living **together** in the **same** house?"

"We're…we're…" How on earth was she to explain without telling them he was her brother and nothing more? She had no clue. Perhaps Kenji might forgive this once. It was so impossible not to tell them, especially Ayako who treated her like a sister. 

Sumen ne, Kenji…

"He's my brother," she finally announced, feeling a sense of relief as she did so.

"Brother?" Ayako's brows arched to high heavens. Even Haruko did little to conceal her surprise.

"Hai, my aniki," she repeated, throwing a pillow in their direction, hoping to wipe the look off their faces. "So stop staring like that."

"But," began Haruko, "But he…you…ummm…"

"I've never seen any siblings ever act that way." Ayako's brow was now creased. "Are you absolutely sure that he is no more than just a brother to you?"

"Yes," Yukiko sighed. "Like I said, it's just Kenji's little game. Please, don't tell anyone else about it," she added, remembering that she wasn't supposed to spill the beans in the first place, "he wouldn't be too happy knowing that I had let it slip. So…just keep it from anyone else, okay?"

The other two girls nodded. Yukiko was relieved. For one, she had finally gotten the secret of her chest and there were at least two other people whom she could share it with. For two, she knew that she could trust both Ayako and Haruko to keep this important information from the other team members of Shohoku.

Now that what had to be done was done, she guessed it was time to get some sleep. She hooked pinkies with the two girls to further ensure that the promise would be kept, then bid them goodnight and exited with the little dog in her arms.

Just as she exit the room and was about to turn to her own room, she met her rather flustered mother.

"Yuki-chan! There you are!" she exclaimed as she stopped to catch her breath.

"Mom, what's wrong?" 

Kikuno burst into a whole frenzy of words: "Kenji…been trying to find him. Seems to have disappeared. I know that I told him that unless he bought a new pen for that dog, he would have to sleep outside, but I didn't actually mean it. It was just an empty threat. But he must have taken it seriously. I'm glad if he has, but not so late at night!!"

Yukiko blinked, trying to catch the words. "Mom, calm down…"

"Can't! If your brother gets hurt or anything, it'll be my fault for setting such a demand. And he didn't ask for some money to buy the stupid pen!"

"Mom, what pen?"

Her mother soon burst into a new explanation on how bad the dog had been that afternoon, that she sent a message attached to the bento that had bee for Yukiko and Kenji. She elaborated on how she had mentioned that as long as there wasn't a dog-pen to contain the dirty dog, neither dog nor boy was allowed to sleep in the house. Then she told of how her son was no longer in the house or in sight, at all. Then she added a little bit on how the tall young boy with dark and messy hair was nowhere to be seen either, "which is not important because I only need Kenji to help Shiro with something and have been waiting for half an hour, and still he isn't back. You know that your brother would never leave the house without ever telling me anything. This is the first and will be the only time he does this. The streets are so dangerous nowadays that even tragedies can happen to you when you least suspect it and…"

"Mom," Yukiko cut her short, "you're going paranoid over Kenji's disappearance. Relax, there's absolutely nothing in this world that could possibly ever hurt Kenji, and with Rukawa around, it's even more impossible to hurt them."

"Can't trust it," her mother said stubbornly as soon as she had caught her breath again. Yukiko could only shake her head as she tried to persuade her mom to stop worrying.

Deep in her heart, she felt worried too. Though she had told her mom that the two were bound to be all right, she couldn't deny that no one could be too sure.

Sakuragi Hanamichi had just stepped out of the house for a breath of fresh night air. He had failed in trying to get to Haruko. The last time he had approached the girls' room, he heard three voices inside, giggling and gossiping, so he had decided to leave at once. It would have been awkward to talk to tree girls all at once, or try to snatch Haruko from them. So he had retreated into the room that he shared with Rukawa. He was glad to find that the fox was not there.

One thing weighed on his mind now. As he walked away, he had heard them talk about Fujima, and heard Yukiko saying something like "he is my brother".

He didn't dare believe it and took it as his mind playing tricks on him. He was tired and there was no way that Fujima could be Yukiko's brother. Hed had seen how brothers and sisters act. They argued at times, the brother would protect the sister *remembers Akagi's guard on Haruko*, they could work together and laugh together and have fun, but siblings didn't go into intimate relationships. That was purely out of the question.

An interesting sight met him as he entered the backyard: a thick branch was lying on the ground, crushing a plank of wood beneath it. Someone was there, trying to clean up the mess, but seemed rather unsuccessful in picking up the thick branch.

It was Yukiko.

"Yukiko-san, what are you doing here?" His question distracted her from her task.

"Oh, Sakuragi-kun, it's you," she said, shifting the weight of the thick branch, before letting it slip once again. She sighed exasperatedly as she bent over to try again, but Sakuragi had the grace to help.

"Arigato," she said as she went over to pick up the other side of the branch. "Oh, could you help me to move it to just beside the cellar door."

He heeded her instructions, and the two moved the heavy branch with laborious effort.

"Arigato," she thanked yet again then proceeded back to where the now broken plank was.

Sakuragi sat patiently on the bench as she cleared up the remaining plank and ropes, watching her in her chores. For a moment, he remembered what she had said about Fujima. Or what he had thought she had said, at least.

But Fujima seemed nothing like a brother to her. More like a lover, he thought. He blushed somewhat at it. Now, come to think of it, Sakuragi never really knew what it was to be inside a relationship. All the while, he had just been trying to get into one with girls he didn't even know well. Even with Haruko…he supposed that she was the only girl that he had ever really liked with his heart. All the others were just nice to him. But Haruko was more than nice; she was extremely kind, and even stood up for him a couple of times. Though she **was** more attentive to Rukawa at times, she still spoke up for him. Especially when it came to those three annoying Rukawa fan-club members.

Yukiko tore him from his thoughts when she sat down beside him. 

"Thanks for the help," she said as she handed him a mug of warm tea. "Kenji would have done it if he was around, but he and Ka…Rukawa seemed to have disappeared." She caught herself just before she used the affectionate term for Rukawa.

"You call him Kenji…" Sakuragi noted.

"Hai, is there something wrong with that?"

"Iya, nothing," he smiled back at her, reassuringly. He could almost be certain that she and Fujima were more than just friends. 

She called him by name…

Well, she did the same for Rukawa on her first day of school. That sure caused an uproar, so she had been certain not to of the same to anyone else unless she had obtained permission.

He wondered for a moment what it would be like to have Haruko call him by name too.

Once again, he was snapped back into reality when Yukiko spoke, "so, how has training been?"

"Good," he replied. Now that he had learned how to do a penalty shot, all thanks to Yukiko, Akagi had relaxed a little. As much as he hated to admit it, Shohoku was molding him into a fine basketball player. And even Rukawa was helping to some point. It was queer when the fox had never retorted whilst Yukiko was gone. It might have been a sensitive subject if Yukiko wasn't attached, so he had the mind to bring it up.

"When you had left, Kitsune fell real silent," he muttered, still thinking about how the player seemed to have lost all sense of direction when Rukawa had landed on him in the midst of their training. "It was like, he was in a daze or something. Only when the old man did something about it, then he got back up and seemed more determined than ever."

Yukiko was staring hard at him.

Sakuragi scratched his head sheepishly. "I know it's kinda strange. Since all I ever do is quarrel with him. But the silence he had got uncomfortable as time passed, and I just thought it would concern you or something, you know. So…yeah…"

"You mean that my leaving affected him…that badly…" She looked into her cup guiltily, and Sakuragi knew at once that he shouldn't have said anything at all.

"No, no, it's not…" he tried to find something to say to soothe her. He would not stand for a girl to cry.

"Was he angry?" her small voice whispered in the night.

"Iya. Kitsune wasn't angry. Well, he did get angry once, but believe me, it wasn't because of you," he added hastily.

"Oh…"

Sakuragi could take the whole situation no more, so he gulped the last of his tea. "Well then, I guess I had better be going to bed. Oyasumi, Yukiko-san."

"Oyasumi…"

He got up quickly and headed back for the house, but before he stepped into it, he cast one last glance back at the girl sitting forlornly on the garden bench.

Rukawa felt his anger rise with every bounce of the ball.

Fujima had dragged him all the way to the Shoyo gym and was now bouncing a ball and shooting it every once in a while. He didn't know what this guy was trying to get at by bringing him here and then not getting anything done.

He had every intention to walk out of the gym and go back to the residence for some sleep when Fujima stopped him. Well, actually, Fujima had thrown the ball at him. He caught it, as expected of Fujima, and threw it right back.

"If you have no business bringing me here, I would like to go back," he stated plainly.

"Straight and forward aren't you." Well, at least he had said something by now. "Okay, I'll get straight to the point."

The bouncing had started once again, but this time with Fujima's voice to accompany the each contact with the ground. "What do you think of Yuki-chan?"

Rukawa folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the wall. What **did** he think about Yukiko? 

"Well?"

Rukawa would have loved to answer that question just so that he could satisfy Fujima, shut him up and go back. But he did not even know the answer himself. The only thing that came to his mind was that…

"…She's nothing that you deserve," he accidentally blurted.

The ball dropped from Fujima's hands and rolled away. "What?"

"You don't deserve her," Rukawa repeated, fists clenched into tight balls.

Fujima only smiled. This was just lovely. It would be so touching if only his sister could be here right now to witness Rukawa's confession.

"And I suppose **you** do?" he questioned, one eyebrow quirked.

His question was responded with Rukawa's fist making contact with the gym wall. 

Rukawa's voice was now a deadly hiss. "I only said that you don't deserve her. Have you never realized how uncomfortable she is around you, especially when you get close, too close. She's fine just chatting and playing around a little, but there are limits to her patience." And to mine, he added mentally.

"I noticed." Fujima's reply irked Rukawa even more so. 

In a short second, Rukawa lunged forward and grabbed Fujima by the collar of his shirt. "Don't you see how uncomfortable you've been making her? Don't you care at all? What kind of a man are you?" he demanded into Fujima's face.

The older boy got just as agitated. How could Rukawa accuse him of making Yukiko feel so uncomfortable when all this time she had been uncomfortable and feeling lonely just by the mere lack of Rukawa's presence.

"How about you!? Don't you think that you're just as bad as me!?" he yelled back into Rukawa's face.

Fujima received a punch in the abdomen by Rukawa, who by then had let go of his shirt. "She doesn't need to suffer because of a worthless being like you," he spat.

"I was about to say the same thing for you," he retorted. "She's been suffering silently all this while just because of you!"

He attacked Rukawa viciously; all the while remembering how bad Yukiko's mood had been on the first day of school, when they went to the rooftop. It wasn't fair! No being on earth had the right to harm his sister in such a way!!

Rukawa was thinking the exact same thing about Fujima as he returned the hits right back at the Shoyo captain. He remembered how Fujima had treated her earlier on in the day. Even on their walk back to the Fujima residence, he still did not let go of Yukiko. Rukawa had sensed her unease, but realized later on that Yukiko gave up after a while and let Fujima have his way.

"You shouldn't be allowed to do this to her, to make her feel uneasy, or anything at all," he hissed, thrusting a fist in Fujima's direction once again. "You shouldn't be allowed to near her or get so intimate with her. Can't you tell that she doesn't like it? Or is your male ego to big that you think that she is at your dispense!? You're such a jerk!" he concluded before receiving yet another blow.

"**You** are the one that shouldn't be allowed to do this to her! You're the reason why she gets so upset at times! Don't you know that at times she can just lose herself in thoughts just because of you? Have you ever seen her so forlorn and guilty before? I HAVE! And she shouldn't even be feeling guilty because it's not her fault that she is blessed with beauty and it's thanks to all those real jerks who exist that try and take advantage of her! Why do you think that she has been moving from state to state, town to town, city to city!? And she could get into the best schools that ever existed in the whole wide world because she's so smart. But all those damned @$$****s just have to come and be a danger to her because they can't contain themselves. And she can never have close bonds with anyone because if she does she'll only get hurt in the end because she has to leave her most precious friends!" He accused Rukawa with anything that could come to mind at that point of time. All his life he had protected his sister in any and every way possible. And his parents' separation made Yukiko suffer even more because there was no one else to protect her.

Rukawa's eyes slit dangerously as he whacked Fujima another time. "I **know** how smart she is and how everyone else is trying to take advantage of her. I've even witnessed some of it before. And I swore to myself that if anyone ever dared do that to her again, they wouldn't live to see the living daylights. You do just what they were trying to do. Only difference is that you succeed. It's disgusting." As soft as his voice was, his words were filled with vile poison for his opponent.

"You're the one who's been hurting her all this time. She just stays so strong at times that you don't even know that there's something up with her. But I can tell when she's upset, I've lived with her long enough to know her through and through." He pushed Rukawa to the floor and stared down at the boy. "All my life, I've only wanted to protect her. Do you know how sad she was just now when you had looked at her accusingly!? Do you know that she told me all about it just after dinner!? Do you even know why I called you out!? IT'S BECAUSE I WANT TO PROTECT HER!!"

Rukawa's eyes snapped wide open as Fujima fell to his knees beside him. "I want to protect my sister because she's easily hurt, because she trusts people too easily. Because she's so innocent."

Rukawa's fist dropped and unclenched as he gazed dumbly at Fujima. The only word that came out of his mouth was "What?"

"They kept tormenting her, even when we were just little kids. No one ever left her alone. When we were in grade school the boys caused so much trouble for her, and a dirty old man even tried to do horrible things to her. She was so shaken that day. But every time after something happens, she'll just try and be happy for other people. 'Kaasan had been crying the day when the police brought Yuki-chan home, bruised and dirtied. She was only twelve then. Even though the police officer assured 'kaasan that they had arrested the man before any violations could be done, we knew that it must have been a horrible experience. But after she came out from her bath, Yuki-chan smiled forcefully and tried to cheer 'kaasan up. She hates to see people sad or hurt, so she holds strong for them. But she doesn't realize that by doing so, she'll be the one sad and hurt. It just isn't fair…" 

Rukawa's fist clenched as he listened to Fujima's words for once. 

Fujima was right. They shouldn't be allowed to do these things to her, or to anyone else for that matter. His mind went back to the time when she had gotten ill in the rain. When she had awoken, it seemed that she had completely forgotten about it. And even when they talked about it, she seemed to cheer up almost instantly after that. 

Fujima is right… how come I never noticed it…?

Rukawa slammed his fist to the floor and finally announced quietly, "I want to protect her too…"

---------------

Lalalalala…. finally finished this chapter. Had a bit of a problem writing it though…

Now that you know Yukiko's horrid, horrid past, I would like to mention a bit on how it's rather possible. With all the evils that exist in the world today, even children are not spared from sexual abuse. I agree with Fujima, it isn't fair. Not only because they're so young and innocent, also because they're robbed of their virginity and they just lose something meant to be given only to the person you love. I would love to send out a petition against child abuse, but am in no power to do so. And the sad truth is that it's virtually impossible to protect them from this after they have been violated, because the fear will always be with them, and they even feel ashamed sometimes. It isn't their fault that they may not be accepted by society.

Right…I'll try and be up with the next chapter soon and I'm pleased to have finally reached 40 reviewers ^^.

©Copyrighted by JadOo Enterprises 2001 


	9. Daddy's Back

**Melting Ice**

_Chapter nine: Daddy's Back…_

Disclaimer: The characters of SlamDunk don't belong to me. Honestly. I mean it. Hey, I'm not kidding. Really, they don't belong to me. Come on, you've gotta believe me. I don't own Rukawa or Sakuragi or Fujima or Mitsui or Miyagi or Ayako or…or anybody else!!!

Yeech, the disclaimer was really, really lame, right? 

Yupz, I'm back from exams. Now that the Horror of horrors is over, I can revert back to my old lifestyle of doing nothing but sticking to the com like glue the whole day long. Oh, except for the times when I'm doing up my cosplay costume. I'm going as Aoi from Flame of Recca. Anybody going? I know some great places to buy chains and hair extensions and cloth and all sorts of cool cosplaying stuff… ^^

YAY! I've finally figured out why my format kept screwing up ^^

Echh, here's your translations while I try and get Rukawa and Fujima to work a proper with me here…

Translations desu!

Okaachan / 'Kaasan – Mommy…

Daijoubu – 'It's okay'

'Neechan – Sister

hayaku – HURRY

sumennasai – Sorry in an 'excuse me' kind of way…preferably after you've done something awkward.

Otousan / 'Tousan – Father

Hai - Yes 

Are – kinda like 'huh?' Normally when you've just realised something

Arigatou – Thank you. I've checked, this spelling is correct. 

Bento – Japanese lunchboxes. They're wrapped in nice cloths. ^^

'Jiisan – Uncle or Grandpa. It's used as 'Uncle' here. (I can't imagine Rukawa living with an old man…)

ahou – more serious insult for 'stupid idiot'

baka – stupid/idiot

@,'--,'--,'--,'- (just found this parting very appealing…)

_All was dark._

_Kaede could hear the harsh whispers of his mother, telling him and his sister Kaoru not to move. _

_Her hands were shaking. It was as though she was frightened of something, someone. _

_"Okaachan…" he tried soothing his mother. _

_He was scared too. Seeing how edgy his mother was, he had tagged along in her game of fear._

_"Kaede, daijoubu…daijoubu…" His sister held him closer to her. She, too, was shaking, but she kept a strong front. She did not want him to feel afraid. She knew what was coming, and she was going to keep her younger brother out of it._

_The curtains billowed as a strong wind blew past. The window was wide open, yet no moon shone that night._

_Kaede shivered and snuggled deeper into his sister's firm embrace._

_Save us, he pleaded. Somebody, anybody, please, save us…_

_A gunshot sounded in the air, and an evil cackle followed._

_"Little pig, little pig, let me in," the voice taunted, "or I'll click, and I'll bang, and I'll shoot your house in! AHAHAHAHAHA!!!"_

_The cackling rang in Kaede's ears. He tried to shut it out with his two little hands. He could not. No matter how much he pressed his tiny palms against his ears, the laughter remained._

_"Please, leave us alone!" His mother's voice was somewhere in the distance. She was no longer by his side!_

_Kaede clawed at sister. This was not good._

_"'Neechan, 'Neechan!!" he whispered, eyes wide in fear. They were returned with the same blue eyes that he had._

_"Daijoubu, Kaede…everything is going to be okay…" she gripped him harder and buried her face in his hair. She was trembling even more than before._

_The wind chimes tinkled louder and the curtains flew into the room, flapping harder and harder._

_"Leave us alone, please!" his mother pleaded yet again._

_"Uh uh uh, not until you let me in."_

_Kaede was biting his lip so hard that it bled. The taste of warm blood made him even more frightened._

_His sister was releasing her hold on him._

_"Kaede, hayaku!" she prompted in a whisper as she tugged at him. She pushed him into the closet among the thick curtain of clothes._

_Kaede felt suffocated in the midst of heavy wool and leather. He stretched out his arm in hopes of finding his sister. Her familiar hand caught his and she squeezed it tight._

_"Stay here, don't move until everything is over. Don't make any sound if you hear anyone come up the stairs and into the room. Remain still if somebody opens the cabinet, you hear?"_

_He squeezed her hand in response._

_"Good, keep yourself hidden," were her last words as she stuffed his arm back into the mass of clothes and shut the closet doors._

_Kaede tucked his legs toward himself and hugged his knees tightly. It was even darker in the closet, and the sounds made were even louder. He could hear every chime, every bang, and every word exchanged._

_His heart pounded faster and faster and his breathing became raspier as he heard the fearful conversation._

_"Please, go away!" his mother was already sobbing. "You promised to leave us alone once we let you in!"_

_"I lied."_

_"NO! Don't come nearer! Ah!"_

_Kaede heard a loud bump against the wall. His heartbeat grew more rapid and sweat trickled down the side of his head._

_"Blame this all on that man. He wants all of you dead."_

_"NO! Kyoshiro would NEVER want us dead!!"_

_"Oh yes he does. He wants all of you dead so badly that he went to extreme means to make sure we kill you." The voice was calm and eerie. The poison hidden within the depths of speech rose to surface._

_"NO!"_

_"Yes. Oh, what a pity. He never told me that he had picked up such a pretty little thing… It would be so wasted if I just kill you here and now…" Kaede was so scared that he blinked out tears._

_"STAY AWAY FROM ME!"_

_"Ouch. Fiery aren't you. I like that in a woman…" Kaede's fist clenched into balls, but he remained still. Kaoru said not to move… "I don't think he would mind if I had a little fun. Since he wants you dead, he must want you tortured as well."_

_"NO!!"_

_"'Kaasan!"_

_A gunshot sounded another time. _

_"Oh, yet another pity…"_

_"KAORU!"_

_Kaede remained still, gripping his knees fiercely. His nails bit into his flesh and fresh blood trailed down his calves. But he couldn't feel the pain. Salty tears dripped onto his wounds, yet he couldn't feel anything. Not even a sting._

_As his mother's newfound screams shot through the night air, he still sat in the closet. _

_He could not feel anymore._

Rukawa Kaede's eyes flew open. His heart was pounding madly and his breaths came out in rasps. Cold sweat trickled down his face as he gripped the white sheets.

What, was that?

"Kae-chan."

His head jerked to the sound of the voice.

Blue eyes, ebony long hair…

"'Neechan!" he cried hugging the female tightly.

What had happened, he did not know. All he knew was that it scared him. It scared him so bad that all he wanted was to find comfort.

"Kae-chan," the voice repeated, worried.

Rukawa relaxed his grip. This voice did not belong to his sister. He thrust himself backwards, embarrassed that he had mistaken someone else for his sister. 

"Sumennasai," he muttered as he lifted his face for a better view of the person. Upon seeing aquamarine eyes he knew that it was Yukiko.

She held out a wet towel and asked, "Are you okay?"

As if that wasn't obvious.

Rukawa nodded in mute response and accepted the towel. As he cleaned away his sweat, he remembered where he was and what he was doing here.

He had come back from the Shoyo gym covered in bruises only to meet the aforementioned at the doorsteps. Like anybody else would have, save Sakuragi, Yukiko had treated his wounds without any questions and had supported him up to the room he was sharing with Sakuragi. She had been slightly unruffled by his state, and thus promised to stay with him until he fell fast asleep. She did.

He glanced to the other side of the room where an empty bed laid.

"Everyone else has gone for breakfast," Yukiko informed him, noting his search for his roommate.

Rukawa said nothing. Last night had been bad enough. But the dream he had was just about enough to make him snap.

"Akagi-niichan insists you guys leave today," she said in an attempt to start a conversation. Rukawa nodded in acknowledgement and handed the wet towel back. Leaving today meant a lot of things. It meant the end of their nice little visit. It meant not seeing Fujima Kenji until the next basketball tournament. And it also meant…

He shifted his gaze to Yukiko for a second, and then got off the bed. Breakfast would be cleared up soon if he did not go down. And frankly, he was a tad bit disconcerted in her presence. 

"I'm going back with you," she finally announced after a long period of debating with herself. 

Rukawa stopped short in his steps and turned on his heel, questioningly. 

"Otousan," she began explaining, twisting the towel about in nervousness, "Otousan says that it's time to go home…I think Kenji said something to change his mind…"

Rukawa returned his attention to the door just ahead of him and turned the knob. Once again, it was Fujima's meddling about in other people's businesses. Not that he despised the man, just that his first-impression was not one of the best ones so far. Also, Rukawa had partly not forgiven him for the treatment of his sister.

"Let's go for breakfast," he finally said as he took a step out of the door and into the hallway. 

Yukiko nodded in mute response and followed Rukawa out the door.

"Be good," Fujima warned one last time as he handed two miniature suitcases to his sibling.

"Hai~"

Fujima Kenji ruffled his sister's hair one last time before she headed out the door and back toward her own home with his father. The time spent there with the Shohoku team had been nothing short of enjoyable. In fact, he had spent the whole of last night playing cards with Mitsui and that cocky point guard. Oh, and not to forget that meaningful brawl with the infamous Rukawa Kaede. Speaking of the devil, he caught Rukawa just before the boy had a chance to leave the house.

"If anything happens to Yuki-chan," he said in a low voice, "you'll be the first one to answer to me."

 Rukawa gave the older boy a hard stare from the corner of his eye. "If."

Fujima smirked and clapped Rukawa on the shoulder before sending off all his other weekend guests, including his father.

"Take care of your mom," were his father's departing words as he slapped Fujima's open palm – a habit that they had developed which grew to be a symbol of a promise. Fujima grinned back at his dad. He did not need to be told to protect his mom or his sister; it was within his instinct to help them, no matter how trivial a matter. Like, for say, the nice incident last night. Now **that** was something anyone else would have considered small and insignificant, but to Fujima it was a great task to better the life of his sister. 

He waved one last time to the group of them and winked vaguely in Rukawa's direction. After which, he guided his mother back into the now quiet house and went ahead to feed Nota-chibi.

He had done everything in his power. The rest was up to the two youngsters.

They threw a large party when Watanabe Yukiko was restored to her previous school, class, and seat.

Naomi and the rest had persuaded their teacher into letting them have a day off and celebrate the return of their (possibly) smartest student in class. Though slightly grumpy at their unbecomingness, the form teacher relented and let them have their fun. And whilst all the other class were slaving away for yet another day, Year 1 Class 10 of Shohoku High were rejoicing in their newfound freedom.

Naomi brought out a whole bag of soft drinks and junk food and set it down on the teacher's table. Since they had a chance to fool around, might as well make full use of the opportunity. She distributed the drinks amongst all the classmates and circulated bags of chips. Naomi had actually intended to bring some beer stocked away in a fridge, but had decided against it. She could always invite Yukiko back to her house for a refreshing swig of alcohol. Heh, then no one would suspect that I actually drank…

The Ice-Boy did not last for too long. 

For one, he hated crowded and noisy places, save the basketball court during tournaments. For two, he had not had a proper night's rest the night before and seriously needed some. Like **now**.

Thus, he left the rowdy classroom and headed up the stairs to his safe haven. 

It was not long before Yukiko, too excused herself from her friends' warmth and left the classroom. She headed up the familiar steps, praying that she would not be caught out of class during curriculum time. 

The sunrays beamed mercilessly down onto the cement roof, increasing the temperature by the minute. Yukiko, not having been in this kind of environment for quite some time, wiped away the beads of perspiration growing on her forehead. Finally, she found her object of search in a shaded part of the rooftop. She knelt down beside the sleeping form and consequently set down the items she had on her.

Rukawa looked tired. His face showed nights of restless sleep. There were shades of black underneath his lower lids: the pronouncement of eye bags.

Yukiko decided against shaking him awake and took up a book instead, reading it after which. It felt like the old times they used to have upon this rooftop. She would be chewing on her bento whilst reading or doing something else that was intellectual, and he would be taking a nice afternoon snooze under the blazing hot sun. How they enjoyed it came back to her, and a smile graced her features.

Rukawa, on the other hand, had registered the presence of somebody else on the roof when she had first stepped foot onto the warm cement. He left his eyes close, recognizing the familiar feel of her presence. In actual fact, he had not fallen asleep at all. No, that was too difficult a task to do. Ever since that dream he had had in the Fujima residence, he dared not fall into unconsciousness.

When he was sure that she was no longer paying attention, he let his eyes blink open and maintained a steady gaze at the being leant against the wall, legs folded to the side with a book in her hands. He arched his right elbow to support his head. She was like a portrait. A picture he had not seen in a long time.

Her aquamarine orbs travelled from one side of the page and to the other, and then flew back to the other end where they had once been. They blinked frequently, covering those eyes with porcelain white skin. Her silky black hair that he had seen in a sheet during the Shoyo episode was now tied in that strict ponytail, just like it was when she first came to school. He followed her fingers as they released one end of the book to flip the page.

He really wished he had a basketball with him right now; his free hand was twitching.

He remembered for a moment his reaction to her on the previous morning. He had mistaken her for his sister.

Exactly how he had remembered his sister was a mystery to him. Both his mother and his sister were killed when he was no more than five years old. He spent the remains of his childhood under the care of his uncle. When his uncle brought out the topic of his mother and sister, young Rukawa Kaede could not even remember their features, much less his father's. He frowned at that thought. It had been a long time since he gave a damn about his family. Rukawa had grown used to the life of a single orphan.

"Are, Kae-chan, you're awake."

He gave her a small, sly smile and took in her surprised reaction. Finally.

As Yukiko marked her page and put her book down, Rukawa scooted over to the empty spot beside her and joined in the comfort of leaning against the wall.

"Oh, got you something." What had been Yukiko's face was soon replaced with a blue bento, with a tag that spelt his name sticking out.

"Arigatou," he muttered, taking the bento and opening it. The bento that now lay in his hands brought back memories of the one that was in his palms when she had taken leave for the Fujima residence. He smiled. A bento for separation, and a bento for reunion.

What the heck was that?

By the time Rukawa was halfway through the meal that had been presented to him, Yukiko was once again buried in her book. He looked down at the food and bit his inner lip. He had never told anyone about the dreams that had been disturbing him, much less his past or his life. But here was the one person to whom he told his secret of living alone.

Should I tell her? was the question that remained hanging in his mind.

"Hey," his old habit of not calling her by name was drawn out again. He continued once she had put aside her book: "I'm sorry about yesterday. Just had a very bad dream. And thank you for cleaning me up after that fight."

He felt almost relieved once that was off his chest. He had been slightly upset when she had not asked why he was in such bad condition.

"You want to tell me about it?" she asked. Rukawa blinked, unsure of what the question referred to. "The dream," she added upon noticing her error.

Rukawa leaned back onto the wall and drew his knees near enough to encircle them. Just like how he hid in the closet.

He shuddered at that thought.

"It was about my past." He waited for her to make a sound, if not say something, but carried on when she did not. "I don't remember my mother or sister very much, other than that they were most sweet and kind. They were killed when I was really young, and they died protecting me. It all came back to me in that dream."

Yukiko nodded her head, understandingly. 

"I've never seen my father, much less met him. But my mother and sister's deaths are entirely his fault. That's what both the murderer and my uncle said." Rukawa brought his knees nearer to him and rambled on. He could not care less now whether Yukiko said anything or not. It did not matter to him anymore. "The gunman was taunting my mother, daring her to open the door, which she did. 'Neechan put me in the closet amongst all the clothes and told me not to move or make a sound. And I could hear everything going on downstairs.

"They shot my sister and I could hear my mother screaming. I could hear her screaming so loud, yet I did not do anything. I just sat there while hearing her cries of being raped. I did not move, I just sat right there in the closet, cowardly not making any noise. And the man kept telling her to blame it on my father. And then when I lived with 'Jiisan, he told me that my father was horrible." He stopped right there, something had been put against his own hand.

"It isn't your fault," Yukiko said, looking him straight in the eye. She squeezed his hand in an attempt to comfort him, but deep inside she hated the way that she could only sympathise with him. She had never left the safe sanctuary of a family. She had no idea how he felt right now. She could not give him healthy advice in any form, but only provide him with some joy and comfort.

Rukawa's own hard eyes softened. The anger and loathing in him had been rising as he remembered the state of his early childhood and the loss of his family. Somehow, the small hand that now lay over his own large ones brought him back to the peace of their rooftop haven.

*ring*

"Whoopsie." She withdrew her hand and reached for her book. The dismissal bell meant time for her to go home. She had made a pact with her father. "'Tousan will be worried if I don't go home at once," she explained when she noticed his curious expression.

Her hand bumped into something and she recognised the bags of chips that Naomi had pressed her to shared with "Ice-Boy". She had taken it hurriedly, and without much thought.

"Naomi thought you might want some," she suggested, forcing the bag into his lap before rising to dust her skirt. Rukawa resisted the urge to refuse and wrapped the chips up with the remains of his bento.

"I'll send you home," he insisted when they were halfway out of the rooftop. Yukiko had been uncertain, but graciously accepted his offer with a gentle smile.

It was quite a bad mistake, for she dragged him all the way through the streets and past the eyes of scrutinizing passer-bys. 

Nevertheless, Rukawa grinned wryly as he walked away from the Watanabe residence. It felt at home to have her around to hear him out.

Rukawa stepped out of the bath, clean and refreshed.

It was a lazy afternoon, and what better to do than take up the basketball and head to the park for a bit off practice. Hopefully, he would not see that annoying ahou **trying** very hard to slam-dunk. If that idiot were really there, then he would have to change his practicing grounds. One could not live in the same environment with that baka without turning into a baka as well…

He took his time to change and get his things ready. He had all the time in the world, why hurry?

Although he was slightly irked at the buzz of the doorbell, Rukawa put down his basketball and approached the door to see who had dropped by to visit. Most people did not know where he lived, but he brushed the thought away and answered the buzz anyway.

He was stunned to find his reflection staring back at him with an equally surprised manner.

"Kaede?" the Rukawa look-alike asked.

Rukawa recovered from his shock and set his mouth in a grim line.

*slap*

The man looked back at him, flabbergasted.

Rukawa only returned that look with a cold, hard stare.

"'Jiisan wanted you to have that."

@,'--,'--,'--,'-

Lalala~ Now that Daddy's home, we can solve the problem of Rukawa's past and hopefully end this fic soon. (Got so many other ideas for fics hanging about in my mind that they've begun to weave themselves into a nice web…)

Okay, I know the story is running out of funny parts in going really drama right now…eepsie, I'll have to bring Sakuragi back to make us all sane again. I don't want depressed readers, thank you.

Arigatou, Minna-san, for supporting me all the way. I don't demand for fifty reviews. But it would be nice to have that number…

Oh, scrap that.

Oh yes, tell me if I have made any grammatical or spelling errors. Note that I use British spelling.

I will enslave myself to finishing this fic ASAP. Not to worry.

© Copyrighted by JadOo Enterprises 2002


	10. Meet the Parent

**Melting Ice**

_Chapter ten: Meet the Parent_

Disclaimer: Rukawa may not be mine, but his dad sure is… I mean, he's my character…

Lalalala…like I said, I was gonna kill myself by writing this fic…eto, feeling a tad bit bored. My sis dragged me all the way to the library and now I've gotta read some more books. Bleah.

Oh, by the way, the title of this fic comes from the movie 'Meet the Parents' (duh!). Hmm… the guy's name was real interesting: Gay Focker.

Okay, I'm not sure if Rukawa is sixteen or seventeen, but I'm taking him as sixteen anywayz. The Japs should have a more standard set of age groups for schools…

Translations (you probably won't see much of this from now on. It's a tad bit difficult to fluctuate from English to Jap and back…)

'Jiisan – Uncle 

'Kaasan – Mother

'Neechan – Sister

ahou – it's an insult for stupid idiots.

@,'--,'--,'--,'-

Rukawa Kaede had never really given a thought as to how his dad looked like. He knew he resembled his father somewhat, but that was all he knew.

But now with the figure sitting on the couch and nursing his cheek, Kaede could not help but note the same jet-black hair that was in a tangled mess.

Self-consciously, he whipped one hand through his own mane and patted it down a little. No way in hell would he want to start looking like his father. He definitely did not want to start resembling this man in appearance. This man had supposedly killed the rest of his family, and perhaps spared Kaede for some unknown purpose. It was as though the dreams he had been having were a prelude to the sudden visit by his father.

Rukawa Kyoshiro, on the other hand, had gotten the shock of his life when his long-lost son had slapped him, and only within seconds of their meeting. He had thought that the boy would have been at least delighted to see his father. On top of that, the first word that the kid had uttered was ''Jiisan'. All this definitely was not making his day a successful one.

The boy had let him in after that painful slap. And stinging it was; Kaede had developed much muscle since he last saw the boy. It was a good trait, but a dangerous threat. Kaede was now leaning against the wall, arms folded with his cold hard eyes upon Kyoshiro. They were unwelcoming and the least bit warm.

A good silence settled between father and son. Rukawa Junior liked it better this way. He wanted this so-called father of his out the door, right about **now**. However, Rukawa Senior was not getting the hint at all. For some reason or another, the man stayed rooted on the sofa, rubbing his bruised cheek idly. The younger one grimaced even more so.

Alas, the silence had to be broken.

"So," Rukawa Senior asked, "how are you?"

The boy would have scoffed. He held it in. Instead of replying the questioned posed by the man, he picked up his basketball and began dribbling it. A monotonous bounce was Kyoshiro's only reply.

"So," he tried again in a sheepish attempt to spark up conversation with his son, "you're, what, fifteen now?"

Silence, yet again.

Kyoshiro shifted in the seat, unnerved by his son's response, or his son's lack of response, rather. But what could he expect after disappearing for more than ten years?

"Sixteen."

Kyoshiro blinked. "What?"

"I'm sixteen." Kaede's mouth clamped shut after he said all that he had to. His hand was functioning as though it were apart from his body, repeating its motions like a machine.

A small, relieved smile crept across Kyoshiro's face. At least his son was acknowledging his existence. His posture relaxed a little. He took this as an opportunity to get a good look at his son, and was delighted to know that the boy resembled him mostly in appearance. Other than those eyes…they belonged to his wife.

"So," he started again, each 'so' alliterating his speech, "you play basketball."

The bounce of the orange ball affirmed the boy's reply.

Well, Kyoshiro could not demand very much, could he?

A question dangled in Rukawa Junior's mind as he bounced his beloved ball mechanically and mustered up all that he had within him to fixate a hard stare on his features. Also, resisting the want to pulverize his father.

"So," the voice was starting to annoy the hell out of him, "are you good at the game?"

The deep sapphire eyes just fixed themselves on Kyoshiro. Once again, he felt that nervousness creeping up him. No reply, as usual. He fidgeted uncomfortably. 

He got an entirely different question instead: "Where have you been?"

This time around, it was Rukawa Senior that was dumb. He said nothing in response to that question. He had absolutely nothing to say to that. Kyoshiro's mouth remained shut. He rose from the sofa and went straight into the kitchen, fishing about in the fridge for a good can of beer. This had, after all, been his late brother's house. He knew exactly where most of the things were. "Hey, you call this a fridge?" he tried joking. He wanted to change the subject.

Kaede followed his father and stopped across the counter that separated the kitchen from the living room.

"I asked you a question, where have you been?" he repeated.

The interrogation was now upon Kyoshiro.

Kyoshiro looked up at his son, and turned away from the intensity that radiated from Kaede's sapphire eyes. The sapphire eyes that belonged to Megumi. With one hand he held the can tightly, with the other he snapped the tab to open it. The oval piece flew from the counter to the floor. 

The ball stopped bouncing. Kaede gripped the orange sphere in his large hands.

"'Kaasan and 'Neechan are dead." His tone had dropped to one that was dead serious. It was not that he had not been serious all along, but this was a **very** sensitive issue that pertained to his father as well. He watched in silence, observing his father's reaction to what he had just said. Deep in his heart, Kaede hoped that his father would be staggered. It was very unsettling to know that your father was the one who stripped you of your family. 

With one healthy swig, Rukawa Kyoshiro slumped onto one of the chairs at the counter. He slammed the pitiful beer can down on the table. It was expired beer, but he did not care. It did not taste too good, but then again, neither did solid beer.

The fingers that were gripping the ball grew white.

"Do you know that?" he demanded of his father.

No reply.

"They said you killed them."

Still no response. 

"They said you wanted us all dead."

Suddenly, the ball was out of Kaede's hands. It bounced violently against the parquet floor and reverberated off the walls, creating a minor tremor at the same time. However, Kaede's voice remained level as he spoke: "You know how they died. You're fully aware aren't you? You knew that they were going to assassinate us."

The accusation was one-way. There were no comebacks from his father. 

Kaede's eyes turned cold and they seemed to see right through Kyoshiro for a split-second.

"Call yourself a father," the boy spat as he walked out the door and slammed it shut. The portal shook angrily, and the orange sphere rolled to a rest.

Rukawa Kyoshiro could only crush the beer can in his fist.

He was at it again.

He loved this feeling of freedom; it made him feel as though he were an eagle, flying freely.

He was perspiring heavily, but was enjoying the feel of sweat running down his jawbone and dripping onto his shirt. It made him feel damn good all right.

He dribbled the ball back until he was outside the circle, the place that was solely his. It was where he scored. It was his three-pointer haven.

Jump. Shoot. Feel the wind rush through his short blue hair.

There could not be a better feeling in the whole wide world.

Adrenaline was pumping through Mitsui's veins, and he was fully aware of that. He loved it. Yeah, he did. There was nothing better in on earth than a good game of basketball. Be it one-on-one, as a team, or even by oneself – you name it, he loved it.

The ball practically flew right through the hoop, not even touching the metal rim. 

There were some girls outside the court, plastered against the wire fence. They were from Shohoku, and they cheered wildly. Applause came from interested passer-bys. Letting pride get the better of him, Mitsui tossed them a charming grin before taking up the ball once again. It would be enjoyable to astound them with his magnificence, just one more time. His mind was racing with memories of the time when he was MVP. Everybody loved him and hooted for him. Not only those from his school, basketball fans from all parts of the district gave him support and morale. Those were the times, and they **definitely** made him feel good. They raced through his mind and another smile plastered itself on his face. He was shining, full of confidence.

He dribbled the ball back outside the circle, and he did so professionally. Once he had reached his destination, he whirled around and paused. The tension rose. If he made it, good. If he did not, what a major letdown it would be. It was alright to show off once in a while, but if one wanted to show off, one had to succeed. Three-pointers were never promising.

It's all in the hands… the phrase he had so often used to tell his juniors came flying back into his mind. And he believed it. It was all in the hands. It was all in **his** hands.

Eyes focused on the net, he positioned the ball in his hands. They shifted according to his estimation and then prepared themselves to cannon the object straight through the hoop.

Mitsui pumped himself off the cement ground. He was ready to shoot.

His audience watched in anticipation, beaming inwardly, knowing that this guy was dead good at what he did.

*slam*

Mitsui's concentration was shattered, yet his wrist gave an automatic flick. He watched in horror as the ball missed the hoop completely and bounced off the board, plunging to the ground below. The object flew up once again on impact with the hard ground.

It never came down again.

Somebody had caught it.

Angry. Cold. Hard. Bitter.

These words were not enough to express the eyes of his junior.

Mitsui could only stare, dumbfounded when he came face-to-face with Rukawa. His audience had the exact same look on their faces. They were shocked; bewildered to find their super rookie slamming open the metal grills that led into the basketball court.

Rukawa held the orange sphere in his hands, idly fingering it. Without a word of apology or anything for that matter, he walked right into the court, walked straight past his senior and threw the ball into the hoop. It went through. But he did not stop. 

Rukawa flung the sphere against the backboard this time. He didn't throw it, he **flung** it. The ball bounced off the board and hurled back at its abuser, angrily. He caught it, easily. And then he repeated the action, muscles rippling fiercely as he did so. 

All the while Mitsui had no idea what to make of his junior. He had been somewhat ticked off when his ball missed its target entirely, and believed that Rukawa was here to spoil his day when the boy had taken the ball. But now, he was completely baffled by the actions of the younger boy. Frustrations seem to be blamed on his poor ball. 

A crowd was gathering outside. What was going on?

Yet Rukawa did not seem to feel the least bit awkward about the strange routine he was following. No matter how people looked on, he continued to vent his anger on the basketball that was not his. There was only one thing on his mind: he had an @$$**** for a father, and he hated the b*****d.

His mind suddenly clear of the confusion, Mitsui went to the fence where the local residents were gawking. He smiled embarrassedly and asked politely if they could leave. Some did, but others insisted on seeing the action between ball and man. Mitsui tried various ways of persuading the public to keep their nose out of Rukawa's business. But them being human, their curiosity could not be satisfied; they needed juicy gossip that would last a week. Finally, the older boy resorted to warning them. He took advantage of what was going on in the court and calmly told the onlookers that if they refused to leave, Rukawa would come out and fling them against the fence like he was doing right now with the ball. Many took the hint, and left immediately. The rest were intimidated by something else, and fled from the scene.

Mitsui noticed the violent crash of ball against metal had stopped. Rukawa was glaring in his direction.

As for the ball, it was punctured and beyond repair. Air was still coming out of the pathetic orange mass, and a strange sound accompanied it.

Mitsui approached his junior, careful not to provoke the boy in any way. He glanced at the ball and made sure that it was not in any state to injure him.  He came to a halt in front of his junior.

"Feeling better?"

Rukawa said nothing but gave a grim nod. The deflated ball was being crushed in his grip.

"'Coz if you want, I've got another basketball in my backpack." Mitsui emphasized his point by jerking a thumb over his shoulder where his backpack lay.

The black mob of hair shook with his head.

Rukawa's white knuckles relaxed and blood seemed to flow a-proper again. 

"Wanna tell me about it?" the older boy probed. His response was a no.

Mitsui sighed and remembered that this was Rukawa Kaede he was talking to. This was the boy who barely spoke a word as and when he could. Trying was of little help. And there were probably only two things in the world that could make him feel better. One was that girl, two was basketball. He chose the latter, since the former was not in sight.

"You up for a one-on-one?" he tried again, playing his hand as best as he could.

The reply was positive. 

Mitsui got the spare ball out.

Their battle was ferocious.

Mitsui was driven to use underhanded tactics and even Rukawa had to admit that the older boy was giving him a tough time.

Both males traveled to and fro from the hoop. Rebounds, lay-ups, three-pointers, slam-dunks – they used every single tactic of the game to score their points. And what kept the game interesting was the attitude of either of them. While Rukawa kept silent and let out occasional grunts, Mitsui was either challenging the younger one or cracking some stupid joke. He got no response from Rukawa, but he was fine with that.

They felt alive, and for that moment, Mitsui felt his troubles that had been tailing him drift far away from his mind. He no longer remembered the unpleasant incidents that had happened. There were just gone. Kaput. Vamoose. No more. He felt free. Even more free than an eagle that roamed the wild skies. In fact, he felt as though he could take on Michael Jordan one-on-one and be victorious. He glanced at Rukawa from the corner of his eye. There was no doubt that the boy must have been feeling that too.

Rukawa's adrenaline was pumping through his veins. The blood was gushing through their vessels like a river caught in a torrential rain. The wind was sweeping through his hair and perspiration poured from his pores. His breath was hot and his body warm. He was too focused and intent on defeating his senior that all thoughts that did not concern basketball fell away like scabs. As he tossed the ball up into the air and through the net, he took in a refreshing gulp of oxygen. 

He felt a breeze pass and stopped for a moment to enjoy it. It felt good, but it gave Mitsui an opening. The older boy snatched the basketball from his hands and dunked it right into the awaiting hoop. Mitsui gave Rukawa a grin that said, "Thanks for being such a sucker" and brought the boy back to the game.

The slaughter began and Rukawa was more determined than ever to defeat his senior. How he would have loved to wipe that smug look from Mitsui's face. The fact that his senior was still in the lose comforted him a little. Nevertheless, he was merciless.

"Has it ever occurred to you that it might be nice to give me more chances?" Mitsui yelled as went forward to block Rukawa from shooting.

"No," was his answer. What else could it be?

Mitsui darted to the right, mirroring Rukawa's movements. "You're mean."

Rukawa gave a curt nod in response and then he bounced the ball through Mitsui's legs and caught it past the fooled boy. Within a second, the ball was bouncing off the hard surface and Rukawa was hanging from the metal hoop. The boy released his hold on the hoop and landed gracefully on his feet. 

Mitsui picked up the orange sphere and sent Rukawa a smirk. "That won't fool me again."

Rukawa only snorted and insulted him under his breath: "Ahou."

Mitsui started bouncing the ball rhythmically. The boy was back to his old self. No fits of rage and bouts of anger. Just normal, heck care Rukawa Kaede of Shohoku High. He was back to the basketball player that really did not give a damn when it came to school or punctuality. This was Rukawa, the trump card of the Shohoku Basketball Team.

Twenty more minutes and both were physically and mentally exhausted.

Mitsui leaned against the fence, keeled over with sweat drenching his shirt and more following. Rukawa was beside him, face towards the sky and mouth parted for gasps of air. Both were tired. Both were sweaty and stinky and dirty.

Rukawa pushed back the hair that was plastered to his face and gazed blankly into oblivion. He observed as people walked up and down the streets, chatting, strolling, trying to catch a taxi or just standing there doing nothing. There was a baby wailing loudly, its flustered mother picked it up from the carriage and tried to calm it down. There was a woman with her arms piled full of groceries. She could not see what was in front of her, and bumped into a fire hydrant, accidentally releasing hold on her packages. And there was a blind old man whose seeing-dog had gotten loose from the leash.

Mitsui regained a proper posture and followed Rukawa's line of view. He really did not see what Rukawa was so interested in. These were everyday people. But he watched anyway, keeping a lookout for any eye-opening event that might happen. He saw the minor incidents that happened from day to day. Nothing was particularly extraordinary. 

"Poor guy, huh?" he commented when he noticed that Rukawa was staring straight at a blind old man who had lost his seeing-dog. Rukawa nodded in mute response. 

"You think someone'll help him?"

Once again, Rukawa nodded.

"Yeah, I think so too." He watched the old man for a little while longer. No one had gone to his aid. "The dog's probably long gone by now."

Rukawa said nothing, eyes focusing intently on the scene.

"So," Mitsui tried again, "you still think someone's gonna help him out?"

Rukawa's head bobbed once. He was still looking on ahead.

Mitsui looked at him wondrously. "Man, you really believe in divine justice don't you." 

It was a statement more than a question. He leaned back onto the green fencing and gazed at Rukawa from the corner of his eye. It seemed as though the boy was anticipating something. Rukawa was waiting for something to happen. Something he knew was going to happen. So Mitsui followed suit and watched in silent observation.

Somebody came all right.

A teenager approached the blind man and asked him if he required some assistance. Mitsui guessed the reply was yes, because the girl put down the groceries she had in hand and left the old man for a while. She returned five minutes later with a barking dog cradled in her arms. She whispered something in the old man's ear. It must have been good, because the old man cracked a toothy grin. The girl then kneeled down and attached the leash to the dog's collar. She tested the firmness of the catch a few times before standing up and informing the blind man that his dog was back. His eyes remained fixed on the scene as the old man thanked her and went on his way. The sheet of ebony hair that belonged to her fell forward when she picked up her goods. All throughout the episode, Mitsui did not get a good glimpse of her.

But beside him, Rukawa smiled mysteriously.

"You know her?" the older boy asked, noting the upturn of lips.

Rukawa's reply was the same. He nodded, head bobbing slowly. 

His eyes never left the street.

When he returned home, his anger had more or less subsided.

He had just had a thrilling game of one-on-one basketball with an ex-MVP and seen a kind act performed. Nothing could really spoil his day now. The sight of his father may have made him slightly ticked off, but Rukawa decided that he was not going to care. He had a life to live, and he was not about to let some run-down crap of a person ruin it.

The house was empty. There was not a single trace of his father anywhere.

Good, he thought as he flicked on the kitchen light. Very good.

But that was not always the case. There was a note plastered to the fridge.

It was from his father. Rukawa's peaceful and serene exterior faded into a scowl as he read what it said.

Written in black block letters, the note said this: "I'VE GONE OUT FOR A WHILE AND WILL BE BACK SOON. I PROMISE YOU THAT WE CAN HAVE A GOOD TALK… BY THE WAY, THE BEER IN THE FRIDGE HAS LONG EXPIRED. WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?" 

It was signed: 'Dad.'

There was a PS that went: 'I'll be staying over for some time.'

Outrageous! 

Rukawa crushed up the note and threw it straight into the bin. His father had committed two unforgivable crimes. Firstly, the man had dared used such an affectionate term as 'Dad'. Secondly, he was asking to stay? The man was out of his mind! There was no way that Rukawa was going to let his father live in his house. For one, there was no space at all. For two, who did he think he was, mentioning that he would stay for sometime without even asking?

This man lacked the proper, basic ideals of politeness.

He filled up a glass of water and gulped it down in one go. Deciding against breaking the glass and having to clean it up, he placed it gently in the sink and left the kitchen. He had more important things to do. Like washing-up for a start. 

He would deal with his father when the man returned home.

Rukawa was about to enter the bathroom, towel in hand, when he realised something. Rukawa stopped in his steps and turned on his heel such that he faced the main door.

A thought entered his mind and stayed there for a long while.

When Rukawa had walked out of the house, the only key was with him.

So exactly how on earth did his dad exit the house without a key to the door?

@,'--,'--,'--,'-

So this chapter is really crap. Gomen, just thought it'd be good to have Mitsui around for a while, since he seems more mature and less intimidating. 

BTW, should I do some Sakuragi/Haruka bits, or do you want this focused on just Rukawa and whoever he's gonna be with?

Oh well…

© Copyrighted by JadOo Enterprises 2002


	11. The Truth Is Out There

**Melting Ice**

_Chapter eleven: The Truth Is Out There…_

Disclaimer: SlamDunk does not belong to me. Such a pity…

Okay, so mebbe the scene with his dad sucked. But there are reasons. Frankly, I dunno how a normal man would react. But since Rukawa is so stoned and expressionless, might as well make his dad, oops – father, I mean, just like him.

Yahyah, I'm so happy that the December hols are gonna start soon, then I can slack. 

Hmmz…TriggerHappy Maniac has got a good fic up. It's under Weiß Kruez, or Weiss Kruez rather. I think it's called Happy Family or something like that…

Oh yes, I'm feeling somewhat drama lately…so dun blame me if everything's so drama…

Just a note, *-----* represents actions.

And I know you haven't seen -- for quite some time. They represent thoughts.

Alrighty then, here are the F.Y.I.s:

Kuso: Damn

Onegai: I beg of you

Zutto: Forever/ always

a…i…shite…ru (aishiteru): I love you

Kyo-touto: Little bro Kyo (coz 'touto' is short for 'otouto' which means 'little brother'.)

Iindesu: I don't mind/ it's alright

Rukawa no minna: minna means 'everybody'. So I guess that makes it 'Rukawa Everybody' ?

Obaasan: Grandmother/ Auntie. But more of Grandmother in this chapt…

@,'--,'--,'--,'-

The graveyard was, as always, quiet and solemn. 

Rukawa Kyoshiro knelt before three familiar graves. Two belonging to his wife and daughter, the other to his late brother.

It had been a long time since he had bothered to see his brother, and even longer for his own family. The second last time he had come to visit Megumi and Kaoru, they were still alive and laughing with him. He could not bear to think about the absolute last time… And his brother… his brother was the one whom he had entrusted young Kaede to.

As he laid flowers upon the marble, he remembered that fateful night.

The night that shattered everything.

The night of horrors.

*Flashback*  

_The wind was howling wildly and only a sliver of silver proclaimed the presence of the moon. _

_Kyoshiro__ was running. No, he was dashing._

_He needed to hurry, to be there in time. He needed to protect the only importance left in his life._

_He knew that they were at home – at the place that he had built up for them with dirty money. The house upon a small hill that he had taken ownership of. The place where he and Megumi had brought up, and were still bringing up, two of the loveliest children in the world._

_Megumi, his wife had never really liked what he did for a living, and she probably still wrung her nose in distaste at his job. Nevertheless, she always helped him pull through and supported him. She took as best care for the kids as she could. And she did her job marvellously._

_Kaoru and Kaede – his children were still I the dark as to what he worked as. If you could call it work, of course. Every time his daughter asked him what he was, he would jokingly say, "I'm a father, that's all." With a small pout she would try to worm it out of him, but he could not bring himself to lie to his children, yet the truth would be more damaging. He didn't want them to feel as though they were stained. As though **he** were stained. With blood, with sin. He wanted his children to love him as much as he did love them. If they were to hate him, he would bring upon himself what he brought upon others. Death._

_They had not let him off as easily as he had wanted them to. And he had expected them not to. Simply for the reason that he had already taken oath, and would be breaking it otherwise. He hated his job. He despised it as much as his wife did. But he had never found the courage to back out of it. It was one of those that demanded your obedience or your life. And this time, it included the life of his family too._

_He continued the long run home, trench coat billowing in the wind._

_Kyoshiro__ did not even bother to stop once his house was in sight. His hand flew automatically to the holster strapped to his leg. He brought out his partner, his gun, and held it up to shoot anyone in sight that he considered an intruder._

_He had heard Megumi's scream as he dashed up the grassy hill, and he knew he was late._

_Feet pumping against the lush green he shot two men as they came in sight.__ They had had no chance to react; Kyoshiro had given two headshots, deeming them dead in a split second. Megumi had stopped screaming, and it had grown silent except for the laughter of men in the house._

_Those bastards, they had done something to his family, and Kyoshiro refused to think about the possibilities._

_He leaped up onto the second floor balcony and crept in through one of the windows. Although his heart was urging him to bash in and damn the intruders, his mind told him not to be rash. Yet._

_Megumi was whimpering like a wounded puppy. Kyoshiro's eyes flashed dangerously as he neared the banister. He could not see what was going on below, but the shadows were enough to tell him. _

_His jaw went tight and his hold on the gun firm when he saw his daughter's figure slumped upon the bottom few steps. There was a trail of blood running from her head. A bullet had clearly been embedded in her brow. He swore to kill them once he saw them. And he did._

_Without a single thought, he sent three bullets flying through the foreheads of three unsuspecting men; another caught the rapist in the temple._

_Kyoshiro__ flew down the steps, rushing to Megumi's side and kicking away the dirty man's body as he did so. Her clothes were ripped and her body bruised. Not only that, she was bleeding too. And tears were gushing out her eyes._

_"Kyoshiro," she whimpered as he tended to her deep wounds._

_"Shh," he shushed, tightening the piece of cloth that had been ripped from his shirt. "Don't move."_

_"Kyoshiro," she started again. Her hand was clutching his trench coat. "Kaede…Kaede's upstairs…somewhere…Kaoru hid him somewhere…"_

_He nodded understandingly. "I know," he assured as he shrugged off his trench coat. "Hold on, I'll bring you to a hospital."_

_"No." Megumi's voice was hoarse and her head shook lightly. "Get Kaede…"_

_He swallowed hard and brought himself to gaze intently into those sapphire blue eyes. "I'm taking you to a hospital," he said again, draping the trench coat over her form._

_She challenged his eyes with her own. Once again, she shook her head, once, sternly. "Kaede…take Kaede away from here…they'll be back…"_

_Kyoshiro__ bit his lip, hard. "I'm not going to let you die, Megumi." He brushed away the fringe that stuck to her forehead and covered her face. "I won't let you die. Not here. Not like that." His eyes flew briefly to Kaoru's form upon the stairs. "You cannot die…"_

_A hand jerked his face back to hers. "And I won't let Kaede die either. Take him away, please, Kyo-," her words were cut short by a cough. It wracked her body and caused her to jerk forward. More blood joined that which had already stained her clothes._

_"Kuso," he cursed, moving in an attempt to pick her up._

_She gripped his shirt once again. "Onegai…Ka-Kaede is…is…up…upstair…s…Kyoshiro…" she whispered as her hands blindly traced his shirt up to his neck and searched his face. And Kyoshiro knew that she could no longer see. He knew she was dying. "Kyoshiro…" her voice was now as gentle as a drop of dew. Although she was rendered unable to see, Rukawa Megumi brought her face to his. Her lips brushed against his chin and trailed upward to meet his mouth. "Zu…zutto…a…i…shite…ru……"_

_With one last breath, one last whisper, Rukawa Megumi fell lifelessly back into the arms of Kyoshiro._

_A single tear fell onto the closed eyelids of Megumi._

_"Kaede!"___

_He flung another closet open and pulled drawers out of their sockets. Kyoshiro bent over and searched for his son in all unimaginable places. Never had his house seemed so big._

_He finally found Kaede crouched amongst heavy winter clothing that had clogged up his wife's spare closet. His son had been curled in an upright fetal position, and was looking terrified._

_"Kuso," he'd cursed for the second time that day. "Come here," he said, reaching to Kaede, bringing his son closer to him. He kissed Kaede's head ferociously before lifting him into his arms. He cradled the shell-shocked boy and leaped out of the window and into the night, turning back only once and vowing to avenge Kaoru and Megumi, no matter what._

_Kyoshiro__ rapped loudly upon his brother's door, ignoring the doorbell that was mere inches away from his knuckles. Kaede had fallen fast asleep somewhere during their journey and was not at all bothered by the noise his father was making._

_Rukawa__ Seiichiro opened the door in his brother's mid-rap and bit on his cigarette, clearly annoyed. He swept one hand through his shoulder-length hair and sighed exasperatedly. "Whaddya want now, Kyo-touto."_

_Kyoshiro__ pushed past his brother and ignored the use of his childhood nickname. There were more important things on his mind, like getting out of this place, fast. He laid his son upon the couch and kissed his tangled hair one last time before turning back to his brother._

_"I need you to take care of Kaede for me," he explained, laying one hand upon his son's head as he did so._

_"Why? Weren't ya doin' a great job yourself?" he brother snorted, taking another puff of his cigarette._

_"Please, Seii-nii, it's important," he begged._

_His brother's eyes flashed suspiciously. "Whatever happened to Megumi and Kaoru?"_

_"You wouldn't want to know…"_

_His brother's strong grip lifted him and his shirt up by a couple of centimetres. "You bastard," he growled, "what didya do now?"_

_Kyoshiro__ looked away guiltily. "They wouldn't let me off that easily…"_

_A fist connected painfully with Kyoshiro's jaw. His teeth cut his lip and it began to bleed._

_"You swore to protect them!" his brother accused. "You swore to protect them and you damn well should have. You promised me and Megumi and the whole wide damn world, in case you've forgotten. And Megumi loved you, asshole. She loved you like you meant the whole bloody world to her. How could you do this!"_

_"I did, I tried. But…but…"_

_"But shit ya came too late, right? Is that the only excuse you can ever make? You're always so damn late like the world's gonna wait for ya."_

_"Just take care of Kaede."_

_Seiichiro__ glared at him in the eye then threw Kyoshiro aside. He gazed at his nephew and bit his cigarette, hard._

_"What did Megumi say?" he asked. His brother looked at him, dumb. "I know she wouldn't let herself die before seeing you one last time. What did she say?"_

_"Megumi…she kept telling me to take Kaede away. I didn't want to. I wouldn't let her die. I wanted to take her to a hospital and get the hell out of there, but she insisted that I take Kaede away…and, and then she coughed out blood and she went blind. I knew she was dying, and I moved to take her to a hospital but…but she said Kaede's upstairs and I should go get him. And, and then she said my name…she said my name and 'Zutto aishiteru'"._

_"Go," Seiichiro said quietly. "Go now. Get the hell outta here."_

_Kyoshiro__ looked at his brother and then at Kaede. _

_"I love Megumi. I always have, and I always will," he said. With that, he went out the door, speeding away into the night, leaving Seiichiro in silence._

_"So did I, bro. So will I."_

*End Flashback*

Kyoshiro fingered the rings that were hanging from his neck. They were the rings he had given Megumi. Their engagement, wedding and eternity rings.

He put them back into the folds of his shirt; someone was coming up the hill.

His eyes widened when he saw her.

Could it be?

After all these years, could she really be alive?

"KAORU!"

Yukiko was in shock.

A blush had crept up her face when this Rukawa-lookalike brought her into sudden embrace. And frankly, she was not quite sure of what to think. One moment she had been chatting gaily with Rukawa and heading up the hill, and the next thing she knew that this exact replica of Rukawa (save the sea-green eyes) pounced on her and was currently attempting to squeeze the life out of her. Also, he had called her by a name somewhat foreign to her…

*BAM*

Oh well, it hadn't taken Rukawa long to react to the current situation. Sure enough the unknown, unidentified and hopefully never to return being was whacked out of the cemetery and into the clear blue sky above.

She stared at Rukawa, mouth gaping slightly.

"Don't worry about it," the real Rukawa replied. "He'll live."

She followed his form as he laid new flowers alongside those which had been settled there earlier. There were three graves before them, each bearing the name of Rukawa. One belonged to a woman, another to a man, and a third to a young girl who could have been no older than them. Perhaps even younger.

Yukiko felt strange in this environment. She felt as though she didn't belong here – she didn't belong in the family of Rukawas.

She watched in silent reverence as Rukawa knelt before all three marble blocks, then joined him out of respect for these souls. She would have stayed longer before the three gravestones that bore the names of Rukawa's family, but it was against her policy not to help those in dire need of salvation.

The battered man fell back to earth, not looking all too good…

"Ah, sumen, sumen," this strange man apologised for what might have been the hundredth time already. "It's just that you look a lot like someone I knew."

Beside her, Rukawa gave a rude snort. Somehow, he was able to make even a snort sound somewhat graceful.

"Iindesu," she said, giving a small shake of her head.

They had long left the cemetery and were heading back towards the home of Rukawa. To top it all, mystery of mysteries, this anonymous man was leading the way. He seemed to know it like the back of his palm. And the front of it too.

She peeked to the side to catch a glimpse of Rukawa. So far, he had yet to say something.

"I believe we haven't been introduced, fair lady. What is thy name?" Mr Anonymous asked, giving her a chivalrous grin.

"Watanabe Yukiko desu," she replied with a faint blush and a small smile. Although she did not have the slightest clue as to who he could be, yet she couldn't help but like the guy already. Her smile slowly spread itself into a grin.

"Oh, what a charming name for a charming being," he exclaimed heartily. 

"Not really," she managed, unused to all this talk. It was an amusing woo. Yet, she could tell that this guy wasn't all **that** interested in her. "Anou," she began, casting a glance at Rukawa before carrying on, "are you related to Kae-chan?"

Mr Anonymous' eyebrows rode high at 'Kae-chan'. Nonetheless, he gave a response, and also a quick quirk of his brow at Rukawa. "Why don't you ask this gent?"

She turned her attention to Rukawa, who looked as though he had nothing to say. He muttered a "un."

"Of what relation?" she persisted.

"You'll find out, soon enough," was Mr. Anonymous' reply when Rukawa said nothing as pertaining to that question.

They came to a halt outside a familiar door. Rukawa fumbled about in his pockets for a while, and scowled unpleasantly. "I didn't bring the keys out," he announced gruffly. Then he cast one eye over to Mr. Anonymous who shook his head and chuckled deeply. 

Mr. Anonymous then walked up took Rukawa's place in front of the door and brought out two hairpins. Under his breath, he muttered something like, "I knew this was coming." As he sat about working the hairpins in the lock, Yukiko watched in amazement at his skills. Rukawa, however, had a frown upon his face. His arms were folded indignantly across his chest. His lips turned even further down when a 'click' was heard and the mysterious man pushed the door open and allowed himself into Rukawa's apartment.

Rukawa said nothing, but he was clearly quite upset.

Kyoshiro bit his lip, not because he no longer knew how to pick a lock, but because his son was began to prod into his true identity.

Wondering how on earth Kaede had noticed his ability to pick locks (he rarely did use this skill), he pulled the hairpins out when he heard a faint click that signified a successful operation. He let himself into the house, not daring to turn around and see the expression on Kaede's face. He wouldn't be pleased, Kyoshiro knew. But he Kyoshiro used to it. No one had really ever approved of him.

Once inside the house, Kaede shut the door firmly behind them, hanging a set of keys on a hook. He had had the keys after all.

"So," he said, brushing thoughts away from his mind; they could be handled with later, when he and Kaede were alone. "Would you like anything to eat?"

Watanabe Yukiko shook her head. "No; we ate before visiting Rukawa no minna."

He 'ahhh'ed his interest.

There was something going on, and it meant a little looking out for his son.

"You know how to pick locks." It seemed more a statement than an exclamation.

Rukawa leant against a wall, arms folded and eyes upon his supposed father. Kyoshiro shifted uncomfortable in his seat. He hated this part. He hated to tell the truth, mostly because the truths of his life were crap as compared to that of normal people. He'd had a hard time when he was trying to tell Megumi too. And now, it was somewhat strange to have to retell his life statement again. He let out a breath, and slumped against the back of the couch. How was it that every time he had a conversation with his son, Kaede would always be the one doing all the admonishing?

His green orbs travelled to his son. "Kaede…I…" he found himself not knowing where to start.

"Who **are** you?"

The question was a painful one.

He hesitated. "I… am your father," he recited, slowly.

"No, who are you, really? Where do you come from? What do you do as a living? Why are you here?" Kaede's refusal to believe was sharp, and incredibly fast. Kyoshiro's mouth hung open for quite some time. He knew not where to begin. His perfectly happy love life, or his entire being that spelled S-C-R-E-W-E-D U-P.

"I, I **really** am your father. Honest. And I am here because…because…" he bit his lip again. Here it came. It was inevitable. "When Megumi – your 'Kaasan – died, her…her last wish was, was that I rescue you, and take care of you…I guess." Megumi's death. Oh how he hadn't wanted her to die. "She, she said she would rather not have you die when, when I could have saved her there and then." He had not wanted it so much and personally, if it weren't for this boy here, she would still be alive and well. She would still be there; she would still be there to be the only one to encourage him. And then Kyoshiro wouldn't have to see Kaede's sour face, but his wife's pleasant one in its stead. "And so, so I brought you to Sei-nii – your 'Jiisan – and left to finish up some business. It, it just took me really long…I guess. And I hadn't the courage to come at first," he admitted. "So I guess I came back to fulfil my promise to her – to take care of you."

Kaede's grimace did not waver. "You don't need to," he said coldly. "'Jiisan's done your job already."

He clenched his jaw. "That was different," he bit out. "I begged him to do it."

"Why? Couldn't you do your duty as a 'father'?"

Was it just him, or was his son getting more like Seiichiro than himself?

*sigh* "If I hadn't finished that particular business, you'd probably be dead too."

"I think I would rather have died. I had no one left when 'Jiisan passed away."

"Life is cruel," Kyoshiro had wanted to say. He had no one left too. Only Kaede was all that remained in this world for him to hold and cherish. Never would Rukawa Kyoshiro dream of taking in another woman than the one he married, even if he was legally allowed to remarry any damsel of the street. Mind you, many of them tried to get him with their feminine willies, but he had resisted and refused all. 

"Neither had I," he finally said, getting up from the chair and heaving a sigh. He noticed some photographs lining a mantelpiece that stuck out from the wall. It was Megumi's picture, followed by a series of pictures that contained Kaede growing up. Needless to say, there were also some which were of his brother and his son, grinning into the camera.

Imagine that, he had missed out the good times of a father just so that he could avenge Megumi and Kaoru, keeping his son safe at the same time. It incensed him somewhat that Seiichiro had gotten all the fun while he was out there, trying to be inconspicuous and silently hunting down the members of the association.

"You killed them," Kaede stated pointedly. 

Kyoshiro swallowed. "Indirectly, yes. I caused their deaths." He killed them. Three words had never been so heartbreaking. He would rather have Kaede scream and shout and yell "I HATE YOU!" into his ears and deafen him than have his son know this reality. And have himself remember how true these three simple words were. These three words that a five-year-old would probably know. What Kaede had just said wasn't something as repairable as a childish holler. It was a fact, an irreversible fact.

"I tried to save all of you, honestly, I tried hard. I sped up the hill and got ready to kill anyone who'd hurt you or your 'Kaasan or your 'Neechan. Believe me, Kaede, I did all I could to save you but…"

"But you came too late right?"

How was it that this entire scene seemed all too familiar? It seemed like déjà vu was picking on him. 

Kyoshiro nodded dumbly, guiltily.

"How?"

Yes, how. How was it that he had gotten himself into such a mess? How did he drag a woman who did nothing to deserve such a fate into his chaotic life? How was it that someone as dangerous as he was allowed to exist on this earth? How did it all happen? How come every good thing in his life had to be cruelly snatched away by one mean or another? Oh how he hated that word.

"It's a long story Kaede…Besides," he joked, "if I tell you now, I'd probably be kicked out of the house in the next second."

"If you don't tell me now, you'll still get banished from this house." Kaede wasn't playing. He was serious. He wanted to know the truth. Not just part of it, but everything.

"I do dirty work for other people." Kyoshiro wanted to explain all of this in much more euphemistic terms, instead of telling the blatant truth and perhaps causing a serious heart attack for Kaede. He didn't know if there was such a thing as a sixteen-year-old having a heart attack, but this would definitely set the record. "I started when I was young, much younger than you. The money was good at that time and I hadn't given a thought to the entire reality of it all. I wanted the money because my mother was deadly ill, and what your 'Jiisan brought in every month was not enough. I feared that if I left everything to my brother, my 'Kaasan would be dead before we paid the medical bills.

"Nobody knew about it, not even Seiichiro. I never spoke about it; I'd just pretend that someone was mysteriously leaving huge chunks of money on our doorstep. It was a half-truth back then - I had my boss leave my wages in a brown envelope under our thick doormat. Seiichiro knew nothing of it, mainly because he was at work all day long, doing all sorts of jobs. I worked only in the night, moving around stealthily, armed with weapons.

"But all humans have to die (*Kaede 'hnn'ed*). Even your Obaasan. I was..."Kyoshiro fumbled with the right word. "I was heavily distraught by her death. I told my colleagues about it, and they – well, I wouldn't say that they sympathised with me, but they gave me words of encouragement. They told me that people die, and that's how it is. I don't know how, but I began to trust them, and I had a special bond with them, because I believed that they really cared. I had no idea that they were only doing it so that I could complete my assignments without flaw and keep up with it.

"And then your 'Kaasan came along, and everything changed."

He paused for a moment, taking a deep breath.

He glanced at his son for a response, and found Kaede to no longer be at the wall, but on the sofa instead. He had been listening to every word Kyoshiro had said. Whether Kaede doubted his words or not, Kyoshiro couldn't tell. But he was much more at ease knowing that his son was listening, and not ignoring him or refusing to hear the whole truth of it all. 

_Megumi was one lady. An unbelievable one. If she hadn't fallen hard for your dad, she woulda been mine._

Kaede distinctly remembered the words that his uncle had uttered in times of frankness. "'Jiisan…he loved 'Kaasan too…"

Though slightly taken aback at this knowledge his son had, Kyoshiro managed a "Yeah."

"Seiichiro," he began telling his story once again, "he loved your 'Kaasan too. I knew he had affections for her, because I watched his jealousy burn holes in my relationship with him. He didn't like it when Megumi and I sneaked out for a film or just a snack. He had his sights on her since Day 1. And your 'Kaasan was in constant conflict with herself because of us. Her relationship with us started as something very plain and platonic. She was very reliable. You could trust her to keep her word. And because of that, I confessed one day. I told her that I was a *swallow* murderer. I told her what I did since young, and I informed her that she was the only other person who knew about it. She was aghast, and had no idea how to react, and I felt really bad and just left her in the park.

"She returned to me a week after that and asked me how it all started. Naturally, I told her. I tried to make her promise not to tell anyone, but that was the only one thing she denied me of. 'Seiichiro deserves to know,' she'd said. 'He's your brother, your only kin.' I tried dropping the subject, but as pleasant a lady as she was, your 'Kaasan was an unrelenting woman. She told Seiichiro about it, and so I got kicked out of the house. It didn't matter to me then, I bought our house very easily. Megumi apologised fervently, yet kept telling me she was only doing this for my own good. She said that she thought it would be better to tell Seiichiro than let it leak out if I get caught. And she was right, your 'Jiisan accepted this fact. Well, sort of. He just despised it.

"And then the real conflict between Seii-nii and me began. Over Megumi. You can imagine how furious he was when he found out that we had agreed to get married. It was kinda shotgun though," Kyoshiro admitted sheepishly, scratching the back of his head. Kaede's expression had turned funny. "We told no one though, other than her parents. But she had insisted to everyone that she loved me. That was something that Seii-nii really couldn't take. We didn't talk for months. He only came to visit when your 'Neechan was born. He had a soft spot for Kaoru. And then for you, when you were birthed.

"After that, I decided to quit being a murderer. I no longer wanted to be a deadly assassin." Kyoshiro took in another breath. This was the hard bit. The bit that they died. "Your 'Kaasan never did like my being an assassin, but she gave me support anyway. Then one day, I wanted to live a normal life. To be truthful, I was afraid I'd lose my honour as a father when the two of you found out. Just you, actually; Kaoru knew a bit of it. But secret organisations, having their nature as such, wouldn't allow me to quit just like that. I had to die first. And they knew about Megumi and you two children, they threatened to kill the three of you if I quit. So I stalled for a long while, painfully pulling through with my old life. And when I could take it no more, I just told them I was leaving, heard their evil cackle, and ran as fast as I could. The rest…you should know the rest."

Kaede closed his eyes and leaned back into the sofa. How much of this was really true? How much of it was false? But then again, it all seemed too detailed to be faked out and he did vaguely remember having heard evil laughter that he'd sworn wasn't his dad's. He remembered a bit about someone scooping him up and carrying somewhere and waking up in his uncle's apartment.

"You're an assassin," he breathed, suddenly realising the weight of the word.

"Was," Kyoshiro corrected. "I no longer am. The entire group is gone, dead."

"You killed them…" Kaede's eyes were wide with disbelief. 

Kyoshiro took another deep breath. "Yes, I did."

Yukiko was arranging some flowers just as the doorbell rang. Rukawa had bought some extra ones without her knowing it and had stuck them in her face with a gruff, "For you." She smiled brightly and added a few finishing touches before pulling open the door.

"Ara, Anonymous-san?" she stepped back, puzzled, and allowed Mr. Anonymous to stagger into her house, a small suitcase following him. "Daijoubu deska?" she asked, helpfully supporting him and letting him plop into a chair.

"Ne, weren't you with Kae-chan?" she questioned again, serving him a glass of water as she did so.

Mr. Anonymous could only give her a toothy grin. "Don't worry about it. He wouldn't leave his father to starve out here."

…

father?

… …

…!!!

"EH!!!!!!???????"

@,'--,'--,'--,'-

Lalala~ Heh, took me a bit of effort to write out such a drama angsty(?) kinda bit.

That's it, I think there's no more mysteries to Rukawa's past or his father. I'm prolly gonna finish this up a bit with another chapter and add a Valentine's fic or just leave this hanging and post up the Valentine's chapt.

Oh yes, I'm sorry if the language was a bit too much (though I doubt so). 

Christmas is coming!!!~ I can already hear the jingle bells coming in just about a month. WAI~

Okay, I'll shut up and go eat now.

© Copyrighted by JadOo Enterprises 2002 (heh, nearly 2003 right?)


	12. Valentine's Special Part I

**Melting Ice  
**_Valentine's Special Part I  
 When Things Don't Always Go the Way We Want Them To_

Disclaimer: It's been a year and I'm still writing disclaimers…do you people not know how depressing it is to repeat over and again that you own practically none of the characters in your purely original fiction? I guess not. Rukawa, Sakuragi, Mitsui, Haruko, Miyagi, Ayako, Akagi and Kogure don't belong to me. And neither does Mito. There, ya happy?

Ack, finally, the end of Melting Ice is dawning upon all of us…

Right, here we are at the second last chapt of Melting Ice. Kinda tired 'coz I've been playing the Lilo and Stitch soundtracks over and again whilst doing up my pieces. And been watching Lilo and Stitch twice over on top of that. "Ohana. Ohana means family. Family means nobody gets left behind or forgotten." Right.

I CAN'T BELIEVE THE KETCHUP SONG HAS BECOME NUMBER ONE ON OUR CHARTS!!! RIDICULOUS, I SAY. ATROCIOUS. UTTERLY AUDACIOUS!! It took over "Round Round". Bah. Suckers.

Hmph. Anyways, this chapt (and the next) was inspired by Hanazakari no Kimitachi e. It's a comic (DUH!) which is kinda dumb but kinda WAFF. And I'm kinda amazed that they don't have a category for it in fanfic.net. oh well, can't always have our cakes, can we?

Speaking of which, NYDC as VERY good mudpies. Simply gorgeous, **and** delicious.

Kka – I think my teachers might have had the same feelings as you. They tire of chasing after me for work and waiting. Sorry. 

Right, right, right. I don't really think you guys need the translations, because the words have been reappearing throughout this entire fic that I believe that it has added to your jap vocabulary. Erm…I dunno… kinda lazy to do the translations since it's like eleven plus at night and I've got Guides tomorrow (not happy, not happy). And with all the complaining going on, I think I'll just heck it for once.

Please don't kill me.

@,'--,'--,'--,'-

I can see what's happenin' (What?)  
And they don't have a clue (Who?)  
They'll fall in love and here's the bottom line…  
Our trio's down to two (Oh…)  
The sweet caress of twilight  
There's magic everywhere  
And with all this romantic atmosphere  
DISASTER'S IN THE AIR!  
_- Lion King___

They peered at the notice plastered upon the walls.

"Valentine's Ball," Haruko read slowly, as one did an epitaph. "All students, please note that on the 14 of February, Shohoku High will be conducting a Valentine's dance in the newly built ballroom to express well-wishes for our graduating students of 2002. Students are to be paired up (male-female, no arguments) and preparations for the ball will commence next week. Students will be assigned to respective committees (eg. Music) and are to take on responsibilities in view of the ball. Parents and relatives may be invited. The school administration board hopes that the ball will be a success. Thank you. Matsushita-sensei. Principal of Shohoku High."

On the other side of the school, the basketball team was reading the exact same notice, but just outside the gym.

"Valentine's dance?" Mitsui stared blankly at the notice. "Why do we need a Valentine's dance?"

Rukawa furrowed his brows. "What's a Valentine's dance."

"It's ballroom dancing," Miyagi announced, proud to have some knowledge of such social events. They all turned to look at him with curiosity. "Don't you guys geddit? We're gonna hafta dance with girls and be perfect gentlemen." The looks he got were still puzzled ones. "In short, dumbos, IT'S THE MOST ROMANTIC NIGHT OF OUR LIVES."

That got their attention. They started buzzing like bees.

Haruko-chan, Sakuragi pumped his arm. I get to dance with Haruko-chan!

Aya-chan, Miyagi's eyes twinkled gaily, you'll be mine on Valentine's. Ah, the day has finally come for us to be united.

Of course, Akagi, Mitsui and Rukawa weren't thinking that far. 

The only balls that interested them would be basketballs.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

"**DANCE LESSONS!!!?**"

Naomi was alarmed to know that two such words existed in this era. Who needed dance lessons nowadays? Who needed to dance?

"Hai," Yukiko sighed. "We have to take dance lessons in view of the upcoming Valentine's ball."

"Who's gonna give us **dance** lessons?" she exclaimed, clearly disturbed by the prospect of having to be some kinda ballerina in a tutu. That was what dance lessons meant, was it not?

"The Dance Committee," Yukiko pointed to the new notice pinned up in individual classes. "Which you also happen to be in."

"WHAT!!?" Naomi couldn't believe the printed letters of N-A-O-M-I on the paper under the larger alphabets that spelled D-A-N-C-E C-O-M-M-I-T-T-E-E.

Similar responses were coming from other students. Most were not pleased to be under the Dance Committee either. Or the Clothes Committee. Or the Music Committee. Or any committee, for that matter.

"But I can't dance for nuts! How'm I gonna teach other klutzes to dance if I can't?"

"Learn?" her friend suggested helpfully.

"Bah!"

Rukawa scanned the list as well, looking out for his name in printed letters. Most of the committees did not sound very appealing. The word 'committee' itself did not bear a good symbol, anyway. He was most relieved after breezing past 'Dance Committee' and not finding his name there. And of course, since he was not the best of musicians, it wasn't found in 'Music Committee' either. But he did find it in the clothes department, erm, committee.

He didn't know how to sew, so he couldn't see of what help he could actually be to the Clothes Committee. He tossed one last, uninterested glance at the list, and then stepped aside for others to get a better view and receive their fates. He couldn't care less.

"Hey Rukawa," his classmate, Hiro plopped into Yukiko's chair, "who're you going to ask to be your date?"

Rukawa shrugged. He didn't want a date. Heck, he didn't even want this dance. If he could, he would go home and sleep and completely let the dance pass him by.

"Really?" Hiro looked amused. "I know a couple of girls who would like to go to the ball with you."

Rukawa snorted. **That** he had already known since the first day he had stepped into Shohoku High School.

"Oh well, if you ever decide not to hog one of them girls, I'll be here to pick them up right after you," Hiro winked and got up, throwing Rukawa a thumbs-up as he returned to his own seat. Rukawa muttered an "ahou" and slumped on the table for a nap. Which of course, was not very possible…

"Rukawa-kun~ will you take me to the ball?"

"No, take me!"

"I wanna go to the ball with Rukawa~"

"Back off girlie, he's mine. Right? *heart heart*"

"Rukawa-kun, please go with me…"

"We could even have some fun **after** the ball, ne, go with me."

Rukawa didn't even bother to turn and look at them. These ditzy girls were more predictable than he had thought.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Mitsui was backed up against the wall and facing a mob of **very** intimidating girls. He gulped as the inched nearer to him. He really had nowhere to go.

"Mitsui-kun~" he cringed as they said his name in all different pitches, each one trying to sound as alluring as the next. His brow was already covered in sweat. This was causing more perspiration than a game of basketball.

"Would you go to the ball with me~?" Most of the questions were structured somewhat like that.

"No…erm…I….erm," he bit his lip hard as his face flushed. Something was brushing against him. He dared not turn and see.

Females, he concluded, were a dangerous species.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Akagi leaning against the doorframe of his classroom, smirking away and enjoying the scene.

Dammit, he cursed. The gorilla was having his fun whilst he was suffering from the torment of girls.

The thought of being in the Dance Committee had been bad enough. Being mobbed by girls was worse. But the most horrible thing happening was that the girl he liked was walking past the scene, throwing him an eye of disgust as she picked up her stroll and turned into a corridor.

He forgot his predicament momentarily and called out her name, but the horde of females crying "Mitsui-kun~" were too loud and overbearing.

¤¤_L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Ayako peered over the edge of the wall to check if the coast was clear.

To her great relief it was barren.

She jumped back when a hand laid itself on her shoulder.

"Eep, Kimiko! Don't do that!" she chided upon seeing that it was only her best friend.

"Sorry," Kimiko smiled. "Just that you were acting so suspiciously. Why? Miyagi Ryota on your heels again?"

"What do you think?" She reclaimed her posture and began walking down the hallways with her friend. "He asked me out for the Valentine's ball."

Kimiko threw her a sly grin. "Don't you want to go? I'd say Ryota could be considered as one of the most gorgeous males in our school."

"Hah. Gorgeous to you, my friend, is any man who has a stud or ring punched through assorted areas of their body," she reproved. "There's got to be something wrong with your definition."

"Not necessarily," Kimiko resented. "Anyway, you should've been walking through the Year 3 halls this morning. You'd be fed by a very interesting sight. Mitsui was pinned against the wall by this whole load of girls throwing themselves at him."

Ayako ducked into the nearest classroom, grabbing Kimiko's hand with her. She had just spotted Miyagi walking through that particular corridor. "Really," she whispered breathlessly. "I thought you couldn't care less."

"I can't. So I walked right past them and scoffed."

"Right." Ayako stepped out of the classroom once again, looking left to be sure that Miyagi had long left the corridor. "I'm sure Mitsui-sempai would be delighted to know that there's at least one girl in this entire school who doesn't happen to think that he's that great after all. Good, Ryota's not in sight. Let's go."

"Uh…Aya-chan…erm…" Kimiko tapped her on the shoulder. Ayako whirled around and let out a demanding "what?" Her friend could only point dumbly.

Ayako turned her head ever so slowly.

Miyagi was there, with hearts in his eyes.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Mitsui slumped into a chair.

"Nice job," Akagi smirked, offering him a can of soda. Somehow, Mitsui had managed to get the girls off his back, for now. The hallways were still slightly crowded, mostly made up of a jealous few boyfriends who had finally come to collect their not-so-faithful girlfriends.

"Thanks, you're a pal," Mitsui muttered sarcastically. "How come **you** don't get mobbed by terrifying girls?"

"I'm not cursed with your charm," was his instant reply.

"Pah." Mitsui took one healthy swig of soda. "Hey," an interesting thought came to mind, "aren't **you** going to get a partner, Akagi?" He nudged his captain for emphasis.

A fist connected with his head. "Baka. I'm in the Music Committee. I don't have to dance."

Mitsui raised a curious brow. Talk about getting let off easily. For a moment he considered the possibility of Akagi asking Matsushita-sensei, or begging rather, not to let him have to dance. After all, he knew that Akagi Takenori was not as graceful on the dance floor as he was on the basketball court.

"What about Kogure?"

Another smirk was plastered on Akagi's face as he motioned for Mitsui to move closer.

Mitsui snickered.

Kogure had elected as president of Dance Committee.

¤¤_L_¤_O_¤V¤_E_¤¤  

Sakuragi was in the hallway, debating with himself whether or not to ask Haruko to the Valentine's ball. At first, it had struck him as a marvellous idea to ask her, but now it proved more difficult than when he had first imagined. Never had his legs felt so much like jelly. Other than, of course, the first time he was on the basketball court in the friendly match against Ryonan High.

He managed a smile when he saw her step out of her classroom.

Though slightly surprised, Haruko soon recovered and returned Sakuragi's smile with a bright one. She waved and walked over to him. "Konnichiwa, Sakuragi-kun."

"Konnichiwa, Haruko-chan," he replied, nervously scratching the back of his head.

Haruko peered at him curiously. "Nani, Sakuragi-kun. Is there something you want to ask?"

"Ah…ah…I…erm…" Sakuragi found it hard to complete his mission. "Er…I wanted…to…to ask if…if you would like…to… walk home with me?"

"?"

Sakuragi had found that puzzling too. That wasn't the words that were supposed to pop out of his mouth. He was supposed to ask her if she wanted to go to the Valentine's ball with her. Why on earth had he asked her to walk home with him? He slapped himself inwardly.

"Sure," Haruko agreed readily. "I'll just tell Oniichan that I'll go home first."

Sakuragi nodded dumbly, trying to keep up the impression that he had intended for a walk home all this time and trying **very** hard not to feel downright stupid.

Whilst they were walking home, Sakuragi was mentally berating himself. There was supposed to be a lot more than just walking home to this whole picture. There was supposed to be some kind of feeling. Some feeling of anticipation. Some happiness in knowing that Haruko was going to the Valentine's ball and be his dance partner. But the problem was, she **wasn't** going to the ball to be his dancing partner. Reason being simple: she didn't know she was supposed to.

Sakuragi Hanamichi felt stupid.

"I wonder," Haruko said suddenly, leaning a little and linking her hands behind her back, "whom do you think Rukawa-kun will be asking to the Valentine's dance, Sakuragi-kun?"

Sakuragi's heart sank.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

It was only two days into the discovery of the upcoming Valentine's ball, yet the whole school, it seemed, was excited over the ball. And since the exams had long ended, that left a plenty lot of time for the various committees to complete their assignments.

The entire of Year 1 Class 10 was filed up in a two lines; one consisting males, the other, females.

Kogure scanned the students, noting the familiar face of Rukawa, who bobbed his head at him. He then began his routine of showing the boys the basic dance steps. Mitsui was somewhere, trying to imitate his movements but failing miserably. And then there was that girl who was supposed to teach the female population.

"Naomi-san," he said as he twirled her around in an attempt to demonstrate exactly how the dance routine was supposed to be, "you have the steps, but not the grace. You're too stiff."

"Thanks a lot," was his reply with gritted teeth. "I really needed to know."

"So," he addressed their audience, who had been hooting all this time and causing him to blush red, "let's see some of you try. Rukawa?"

Rukawa looked to his left, and then to his right. All around him, people were just waiting to see him give a stab at dancing. Some he knew, were just trying to find a chance to gibe him. Others, he feared, were finding a chance to swoon. He blinked at Kogure before stepping forward. He couldn't blame Kogure for this, after all. His senior was trying hard to make all this work, and the least Rukawa felt he could do was cooperate.

Naomi stepped up to 'help' him. And as much as Rukawa knew that Naomi was in many ways not an extremely nice person to be associated with, he took her hand dispassionately and positioned his right hand on her waist. She growled at that action, but followed procedure nonetheless, ignoring hungry eyes that lay upon them.

Feeling that it was quite all right to correct Naomi, Rukawa told her most expressionlessly that she was too stiff. 

What he did get what Naomi breaking away from their current position to end Rukawa's try-out. She complained that he was breaking her bones with every misstep he took (which was actually her fault).

Mitsui sighed deeply as he watched the dance lessons carry on. 

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

"Miyagi, you gotta help me," Mitsui finally announced as the two of them were making their way towards the gym. The school having a Valentine's ball did not qualify for the list of reasons to cancel basketball practice. And frankly, most of the basketball players were grateful for that. 

"Whassup?" Miyagi, being the always-reliable man for Mitsui asked as he plunked his gym bag onto the bleachers. It was amazing how close he and Mitsui had grown over the year. And it was unbelievable that they used to fight and get one another into hospitals.

"The girls are haunting me," groused the three-point star. "I can practically hear their demonic calls of 'Mitsui-kun~' every night! It's like being hunted down by a pack of wild dogs. **Very** wild dogs."

Miyagi tossed him an amused smile. He had witnessed the scene every morning when the two of them walked through the school gates. "Enjoy it while you have it," he teased, rummaging his bag for a loose tank top.

"You're not helping," came a grumble as Mitsui searched his own bag for his basketball attire. "It's been driving me crazy all week," he emphasized, trying to get Miyagi to sympathise with him. "Now I know how Rukawa must feel. Like the only piece of meat dished out for a cage of hungry lions."

"Rukawa doesn't really bother about all this like you do," Miyagi stated point-blank. "He prolly doesn't even give a second thought as to the throng of babes that hoard him everyday."

Mitsui had to agree. Rukawa wasn't as whiny as him.

"But Rukawa doesn't need to care. I do!"

Miyagi was bemused. "Why ever?"

"Because his girl doesn't seem to mind at all." 

Miyagi stopped mid-step and turned very slowly to look at Mitsui. "Whaddya mean?" he asked slyly, smirking even. 

Mitsui cursed inwardly for letting it slip. "There's…there's just this girl whom I've had an eye on for some time," he confessed, thinking that his secret would be safe with his best bud. After all, he knew some of Miyagi's darkest truths, and vice-versa.

"Oooh," Miyagi oohed irritatingly. "Who?"

"Shut up and keep it down, okay," Mitsui seethed and look around to check that there was no one else about. "Promise to keep this between two of us."

Miyagi put a palm cross his chest. "Cross my heart, I won't leak it."

Mitsui motioned for his friend to move closer, and then mumbled a name under his breath. Miyagi propelled away from his best friend in disbelief.

"You…you…" he couldn't help but stammer. This was unimaginable. "You actually le-like…**HER**!!?"

Mitsui seemed hurt by his words. "What's wrong with liking her?"

"But, but she's…she's a horrible being! I mean… how can you like **her**?" Miyagi huffed and laid a hand on Mitsui's shoulder. "I'm sorry man, but you've really picked the wrong girl to like. It's not that there's something… I mean… I dunno. I won't comment, 'kay?"

"I find her way better as compared to those who hound me down everyday," Mitsui mumbled, making a head start towards the showers. Somehow, he had felt a tad bit embarrassed about telling Miyagi at first. But now, a tinge of irritation came over him. Who was Miyagi to tell him anything about her anyway? 

"Listen, Mitsui," Miyagi had caught up with his pace and was struggling to keep with Mitsui, yet balance the million objects that were hugged against his chest, "I know that I shouldn't have told you that you've set sights on the wrong feline, female, I mean. But, really, you haven't gotten to know her yet."

"How'd you know anything about her anyway?" Mitsui's pace was quickening. What **was** Miyagi's problem anyway?

"Of course I know her," Miyagi said exasperatedly. "She's Aya-chan's **best friend** for goodness sake!"

Mitsui's expression was unreadable. "You've got to be kidding…"

Miyagi gave a curt shake of his head to affirm that this was no joke.

A slow smile spread itself across Mitsui's face.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Rukawa tried hard to stay still and not fidget as a pair of hands moved across his stomach, round his waist and tightened a tape measurer around his abdomen. **Very** aware of the pair of hands taking his measurements, he shifted self-consciously. 

"Mou, don't move so much," chided a voice. "You'll make me lose the measurements. Okay, waist done!" Somehow Rukawa felt somewhat relieved when that was announced.

"Just the neck left," Yukiko scribbled a set of numerical digits on her clipboard as she rose from her squatting position. She smiled at Rukawa before stretching a length of tape measurer once again. "Okay, just stay still," she instructed as she wound the tape around his neck once. He stood at her command, trying hard not to swallow.

"There." Yukiko gave him an encouraging pat on the shoulder before returning to where Ayako was, collecting measurements for the various students and feeling particularly stressed over it. There were another twenty-plus students waiting in line to be measured, most of them were girls.

"NEXT," Ayako barked, causing the next in line to step forward and throw in a salute. "Yukiko-chan, you know the procedure."

So Yukiko went on ahead to take measurements, handy tape in hand and clipboard in the other.

Ayako glanced at her watch and frowned. Her helpers should have been back by now, ready to run their errands, do their duty, and **try** to complete their assignments. But they weren't. Frustrated, she grabbed a roll of measuring tape and tossed it to Rukawa, who caught it on instinct. Rukawa looked puzzled.

"We're short-handed," she said flatly.

He nodded understandingly, holding the tape by an end such that the rest of it dropped to its full length. He didn't know exactly how to use a tape measurer, but figured that it would be simple. And then, Rukawa noticed something. Gazing confusedly at the tape, he realized that there were to different measuring types.

"In inches," Yukiko prompted. And Rukawa realised that she refrained from using his nickname.

A girl was already prepared to have her measurements taken and stood in front of him, simpering. Rukawa turned his eyes back on expressionless mode and took the starting end of the tape. He recognised this girl from his fan club, understanding that she was one of the founders. Not that he cared, but Mitsui and Miyagi had been lame enough to find the roots of the Rukawa Fan Club and had been most gleeful in providing all details.

"Rukawa," she greeted coyly. Rukawa gave no response, but instead looked at the different measurements he had to take. In so doing, he completely missed the girl's attempt to flash a little more skin.

Rukawa shot a glance at Yukiko before half-returning his attention to this girl. He had nearly expected Yukiko to say something or stop mid-work to sneak a peek, but in any case, he didn't catch her doing that. Resigned, he wrapped the tape around the girl's neck once and recorded the measurement.

On the other side of the room, taking the different dimensions of another female student, Yukiko slid her eyes over to where Rukawa was calmly doing his job. Somehow, a sense of uneasiness came over her as she took small peeks. This girl was one of the most flirtatious girls in the school. She and the rest of the world knew it. She bit her lip a little, regaining focus on her actual task, mentally reminding herself that almost every other girl flung herself at Rukawa and this one was no different.

But then again, Rukawa having to take measurements equalled to Rukawa having to be in fleeting contact with this girl every once in a while. She bit her lip harder, feeling a tinge of anger.

Mara grinned inwardly, taking in every move that Rukawa made. She must be one of the luckiest girls to ever come in such close contact to the famous bishonen. She noted his reluctance to actually touch her. Rukawa's fingers were removed as soon as they came. Mara smiled purposefully; hoping to overcome him with her irresistible charms. After all, even seniors from the third year obeyed her every wish.

Mara soon forgot all her earlier musings when she realised that Rukawa had stopped. The measuring tape hanging from his palm. But, thought she, Rukawa had only measured her neck, shoulder breadth, arm length, upper arm length, forearm length, and leg length. That couldn't be it, could it?

A clipboard with assorted numbers jotted against the various needed measurements was stuck in her face. Reading off the list, Mara lewdly examined the measurements yet to be taken. There was the waist, hips and of course bust-size.

"Here," Rukawa was holding out the measuring tape, "do the rest yourself."

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Miyagi wasn't paying attention when the disco-ball flew out of nowhere and swung at him, eventually attacking his head. Nursing his smarting head, he grabbed the disco-ball and swung it back to wherever it came from. Good thing someone had caught it. 

"Yo Ryota, wassup? Why so glum?" One of his teammates questioned.

Miyagi just shook his head and mumbled "nothing" back to his friend.

He was perched precariously on top of a ladder, setting up the new ballroom for the Valentine's Dance. He swept a hand through his hair, trying his best to ignore the frustrations that he had. Firstly, Ayako seemed to be avoiding him. Whenever he went to her usual hangouts, she was nowhere to be found. Instead, he bumped into her by fluke (or by fate, Miyagi would rather think). And then there was Mitsui's problem. As much as he hated to put Mitsui down on such matters, Miyagi really had to have his say about Kimiko. Never had he liked Kimiko. He just accepted her, because she was Ayako's good friend. But other than that, Miyagi sought no reason to like her. She was always hiding Ayako if she could, deliberately stealing his Aya-chan away for things like movies and lunches and even dinner. More than once, Miyagi had felt nothing short of infuriated when it came to Kimiko.

He sighed, rubbing the back of his head.

"Hey, you having a problem trying to get a dance partner? I understand."

Oh, how Miyagi wished that they would just shut up. It wasn't just having Ayako as his dance partner for one night only. He wanted more than that. Miyagi Ryota wanted to have a good, sturdy relationship with Ayako. He wanted to find out stuff about Ayako that he had never known. He wanted to see the Ayako that nobody knew. He longed to have Ayako trust him and have a chance to prove it to her.

Why else did she think he played so hard on the court? For what reason did she think that Miyagi had started playing basketball?

He had always wanted to impress her.

Miyagi returned his attention to the thick ribbon that was drooping from the ceiling. Letting out a puff of air, he resumed work, conscientiously pinning up the ribbon and trying hard to push away all thoughts that did not concern decorations of the ballroom.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

"Had a good day?" Kaede did nothing but scowl at his father, who was on the couch, watching a soccer match. He shut the door behind him and plopped his gym bag onto a nearby chair.

"Something came in the post today," Kyoshiro said, jerking a thumb over his shoulder to where the kitchen counter was. A single envelope lay on top of the wood. "Something about some Valentine's dance or something," his father continued.

"You read it?" Kaede demanded, picking up the envelope and flipping it over to see if the flap had been torn open.

"Nah. It's printed on the cover." It was. Kaede could see the black italic 12-point words that spelt out "Re: Valentine's Ball". He wondered which unprofessional person had printed out the invitations and had made such a bad mistake.

Kaede slit open the letter with a knife and removed the paper-thin card inside, reading off it with much disinterest.

"So you have to go to a dance, huh?" Kyoshiro said, reaching into a new bag of chips. Kaede nodded sullenly. The card had mentioned that it was compulsory. That meant that he could only get away if he was sick and dying. Not good. His father didn't even try to cover the amused grin that was coming along. "That means that you've got to dance, right?"

Kaede sunk into the couch, grabbing a spare bag of chips from the row on the table, ignoring his father's selfish "Hey, that's mine!" Kyoshiro had got a job after weeks of search. It wasn't much of a big deal, actually. Most people had been willing to take him in. Most **female** employers, to be exact. He was really an offer not to be refused, a free worker to flirt with. With jet-black hair and sea-green eyes, Kyoshiro still looked amazingly handsome. 

The only reason why it had taken his father so long was because he was more used to doing work involving espionage and spy-stuff, not accounting and goodness knows what. Also, Kyoshiro had been looking for a job without many women as fellow employees. Having people throwing themselves at you wasn't very comfortable after going through a whole lot of it. He finally settled down in a nearby bakery, spending most of his time behind the counter and welcoming the passer-bys, who tended to overspend their stay. He also did some part-time modelling, thus getting a good load of cash.

Kaede gazed at the screen in boredom. There was really nothing much to do anymore now that this crazy dance had come up. Somehow or another, the practices weren't as frequent as they had once been, mainly due to the reason that the different committees had different time slots. It made things more difficult than they had to be.

"Who are you planning to go with?"

Kaede didn't get the question.

"Who are you going to the dance with?" Kyoshiro tried again. He got a shrug from his son. He 'tsk'ed at Kaede gulped down a glass of water.

Kaede picked himself off the couch and sauntered towards the bathroom. He had better things to do than sit around, trying not to think about the dance. Like work, for a start. Even though his biological father was back and was providing a lot of cash, Kaede still preferred to work and earn his keep. Although he didn't know it, he wanted to prove to Kyoshiro that he could survive on his own. No matter how many times Kyoshiro told him to quit his job and concentrate on other things in life, Kaede refused this offer. 

"Why don't you take that girl, Yukiko? She seems nice," Kyoshiro suggested helpfully as Kaede disappeared into the bathroom.

Kaede had thought of it. But, then again, there were so many other guys that she could go with, and were persistently trying to get the dance-date with her. He had decided to wait and see what she would do about it.

Then again, he also had his own problem with those far from modest girls.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

She checked the corridor for the fifth time before turning into it, sneaking past lockers and classrooms, tiptoeing so that her presence would not be heard. Once again, she found herself trying to hide from him. She was fearful of all the various measures he would go through. Already, he had embarrassed her by presenting her with a bouquet of flowers in class, leaving a box of chocolate on her table, and declaring his love for all those who bothered to hear.

Seriously, she had had enough.

She jumped at a tap on her shoulder.

"Kimiko, haven't I always told you…" was her first reaction. But it wasn't Kimiko that was standing behind her. "Mitsui, hey," she gulped apologetically, flushing slightly at her mistake. 

"My, looks who's edgy," he commented, grinning ever so slightly. Ayako scowled. It wasn't **her** fault that Miyagi went way out doing all sorts of weird things, dragging her along for the ride and practically ruining her reputation. How would Mitsui like it if another person of the opposite sex flooded **his** mailbox with stuff that held declarations of love? Oh wait. Mitsui would probably enjoy it.

"Anyway, I need your help," her senior said, throwing in a, "And I assure you, Miyagi is currently tied up with duties."

Ayako relaxed at the new revelation.

"I'm trying to get to know this girl that I really, really like." Mitsui got straight to the point, refusing to beat about the bush. He could trust Ayako, everyone knew that. Also, since she was Ayako's best friend, it made things a whole lot easier.

"Shoot."

"Miyagi told me that she hangs around with you a lot, so I thought I could ask you what she likes." Uh oh was Ayako's first thought. Whoever this person was, she was gonna suffer the same Miyagi-fate. The agony of having to be embarrassed not by one's will or stupidity.

"Who is it," she asked meekly, wondering whom this poor soul was.

"Kimiko-san," Mitsui admitted, so soft that only Ayako could hear it.

Ayako chewed on her lip. This was a problem. "Okay…but, there's just one small, minor, teeny detail."

"Yes?"

"She hates your guts."

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

"Hanamichi." Sakuragi barely had the time to turn and see who called his name when an arm snaked around his neck. It was Youhi.

"Hey," he replied, deadpanned.

Youhi removed the arm that held his good friend in a headlock. He could sense that something was wrong with Sakuragi. His friend was down in the dumps.

"Did something happen?" he asked, concerned. Not only for Sakuragi, but also for his health. Lots of people knew that if Sakuragi Hanamichi was in a bad mood, and you said something wrong, you were done for.

Sakuragi shook his head sullenly.

"Has it got something to do with Haruko-chan, and maybe, perhaps, Rukawa too?" he queried once again, thinking of all the different possibilities. It could be a lot of things, but few mattered when it came to Sakuragi.

The mass of red bobbed once and a sigh was let out.

Youhi shook his head. There was always this problem with Haruko liking Rukawa. In fact, the problem was all over the school. He himself had a few problems with girls, mostly because they were after the bishonen or that three-pointer star. But then again, Haruko hadn't been paying that much attention to Rukawa lately.

"Have you asked her out to the dance yet?"

Sakuragi's head turned left, then right in mute response.

"What are you waiting for," Youhi cried, giving him a slap on the back and trying his best to be encouraging. "You've got to beat Rukawa to it!"

Instead of having Sakuragi repay him for that painful slap, he heard his friend exhale deeply. "He won't ask her; he's got his own girl," he explained, jabbing his hands further into his pocket.

"Then?"

Sakuragi looked down at the ground in all his glumness. "What can I do? How can you make a girl **not** like someone? I can't change Haruko-chan's mind, can I!"

"Hanamichi…"

"Go away, Youhi, I need some time to myself."

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

"Ne, oniichan, who are you going to the ball with?"

Takenori was careful not to drop the dumbbell in surprise. He lifted his head, keeping his arm pumping at a constant pace. Haruko was on his desk-chair, sitting wrong way around with her arms rested on the backrest. "Why do you ask?"

"Just curious," she said, playing with a baseball cap and eventually fitting it on her head.

"Hn. If you really want to know, I'm not going with anyone," he replied grimly, switching the dumbbell to his other arm.

"Ehhhhhhh? Why not?"

Good question. There were times when Takenori tried to answer that question himself, but couldn't come out with appropriate reasons. "Because I'm going to be a musician while **you** dance," he said, attempting to turn the tables around.

"Demo, the musicians have shifts, right?" Takenori nodded. "Then, you're not going with a girl? At all?"

Though slightly annoyed at the disbelief hinted in his sister's voice, Takenori responded with a familiar shake of head.

"You're not even going to try?"

Takenori shook his head dourly.

"Demo, oniichan…" Haruko tried, but Takenori was too fast.

"Has anybody asked **you**?" Takenori knew the answer, but asked anyway. It was better to give her the interrogation than have himself in an uncomfortable spot. There was nothing wrong, or alien about not happening to have that kind of liking for girls, right? And of course, he wasn't fond of men either. Even if Takenori had an eye for a girl, he probably wouldn't waste his time on this dance. No, Akagi Takenori was too cantankerous for that.

"Iie," she replied, sounding somewhat dejected. Takenori was surprised; he had expected Sakuragi Hanamichi to ask her the day they had found out about the Valentine's Ball. Evidently he hadn't.

"Really?" he didn't need to feign disbelief.

"Aa." Haruko let her head droop from the backrest. She let out a long sigh and decided to change the topic. 

"But I sure hope that Rukawa-kun goes with Yukiko-chan," she perked thoughtfully.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

She was more than infuriated.

What had just started with Rukawa taking that flirt Mara (she had by now learnt Mara's name) grew to a rather big scene which now required the rest of the students to reschedule the takings for the next day. Although she hadn't really heard what had been going on between Rukawa and Mara, Yukiko could sense that there was something going on. She couldn't really put her finger to it. She had been clueless when Rukawa had handed the tape to Mara and offered the clipboard to Mara.

Somehow, Mara his misinterpreted it as him wanting her to take his measurements. Ms Flirt-of-the-Year went on ahead to wind the measuring tape around him, complaining thereafter that she had no idea how to use it as Rukawa nonchalantly shrugged the tape off himself.

After that, all of hell nearly broke loose.

Nearly.

Ayako had stepped in, taken the tape, took the remaining measurements and then ordered Mara to leave. The slut had blown Rukawa a coy kiss and promenaded away, swinging her hips in smooth motions.

Yukiko took her pillow and hugged it tight. As much as she was angry at Mara, or Rukawa, or whichever, she wasn't going to destroy any of her things because of something like this. It had taken her a great amount of self-control not to strangle the girl whom she was helping take measurements. 

She buried her face in her pillow.

What she wouldn't do just to have her brother here…

"Hey, Squirt." She felt a familiar hand muss up her hair once again. "Miss me?"

A single aquamarine orb peeked up and widened to the size of plates.

"K…Ken…ji…?"

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

He was ready.

"Haruko-chan, will you marry me?" The words glided out of his mouth as he brought out a small box casing a diamond ring.

Haruko was blushing madly. "Sa..sa..Sakuragi-kun!" she protested, stammering.

"Hanamichi," he said, huskily. "Call me Hanamichi, Haruko-chan."

"Uh…Un!"

Wedding bells pealed as Sakuragi Hanamichi stood in front of the pews, for all to see. The words he was supposed to have asked went a bit further than planned, but nevertheless everything worked to a success. He was getting married. He was getting married with Akagi Haruko, the love of his life.

Rukawa was seated in the front pew, his arms folded unhappily across his chest. Sakuragi hadn't wanted to invite him, but it was the least he could do since Haruko was going to be his soon. 

In a moment, Takenori would be walking through the door, guiding his sister to the front, ready to give her away to Sakuragi.

The slow wedding march began as the door opened with magnificence, revealing the beautiful bride, dressed in white with her train trailing behind her. A tall male linked arms with her and led her to the front. As Takenori approached the front, he handed Haruko over, grimly. 

The clergyman cleared his throat as he began to read of the book. "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the…"

"Yah yah yah, hurry up and get on to that part!"

Nursing the bump that was growing on his forehead, the clergyman flipped through the book ruefully, only stopping when he arrived on the page he was looking for. Clearing his throat once more, he turned to the bride. "Do you, Akagi Haruko, take this man, Sakuragi Hanamichi as your husband? To love and to hold… … … … (blah blah blah blah)… … … …to death do you part?"

"I do," came Haruko's sweet chirp.

He then turned to Sakuragi. "Do you, Sakuragi Hanamichi, take this woman, Akagi Haruko, to be your wife? To love and to hold, to…"

"I DO!" Sakuragi declared, glancing meaningfully at Rukawa, who scowled back.

The clergyman pushed his glasses up the bridge of his Roman nose. "You may now kiss the bride," he signalled.

Without hesitation, Sakuragi's face neared Haruko's own. He could feel the blush creeping up his skin, and could tell that Haruko's face was red too. Inhaling, he swept away the white veil: the only thing that hung between him and his bride.

She was…breathtaking. It was all Sakuragi could do not to suffocate.

Her brow was bushy, her skin dark. The once pointy jaw was now set in square. Also, she seemed to tower over him by twenty centimetres. Her hair had been cropped short and was now in crew cut. 

Haruko had become her brother.

"OOOF!!"

With a thump, Sakuragi landed on the floor.

Massaging his bruised rump, he stumbled to bed, plunking himself on the soft white covers. No more ice cream and pickles for him.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Ayako took a deep breath. Remembering her conversation with Mitsui the day before, she bit her lip, readying herself to face her friend. Being the idiot that she was, she had actually agreed to helping her senior get with the girl he liked. Ayako had not an inkling of why she had brought herself into this mess. Still, that didn't give her a reason to fail Mitsui now.

"Kimiko," she greeted as her best friend came through the doors.

"Heya," Kimiko replied, gaily slinging her bag to her other shoulder. "How's it going?"

"Eh?"

"I mean, you and Ryota."

"Fine," she bit. "Eh…Kimiko?"

"Nani?"

"Lets go see the basketballers practice after school, 'kay?" she finally said, feeling a tad bit relieved. Pressure was not a comfortable thing to have.

"But that's boring, Aya-chan! Please don't make me suffer…" Kimiko, obviously not a big fan of basketball, protested.

Feeling somewhat offended Ayako gasped out a "Hey!" She then caught herself before going so far as to tell her friend off for staining the name of basketball. She had promised Mitsui this, and keep the promise she would. It was the least she could do since Mitsui was such a close friend of Miyagi…erm, was such a helpful fellow basketball player, she meant. Now where the **hell** did that come from?

"So, are you coming or not?" she demanded haughtily.

"Sure, as long as you promise to send me to the hospital once I faint from boredom."

"You won't, I promise," Ayako grit. She'd made enough promises thus far.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

There was something missing in this atmosphere, but Rukawa Kaede couldn't really put his finger to it.

They were in the same place, with the same people, and doing the same thing. However, today seemed kind of different from yesterday. He could swear that something had changed, and he was determined to find out.

"Men only," Ayako said as she passed him new sheets of forms to fill out. Rukawa took the measuring tape, sighing inwardly, blissful that he did not need to interact with those females again. Seriously, their feminine willies could freak him out if he wasn't so stoned all the time.

There was a group of surly looking fellow Year 1s, juniors just like him. The one that stepped forward gave him a good glare before standing decidedly still. Rukawa did the routine measurements, checking each necessary dimension as he went through them. Every now and then, he sneaked a glance at Yukiko.

That was when he found his answer. 

Unlike before, Yukiko wasn't turning to look at him ever so often. Nor did she make as much chatter as before.

His sapphire eyes focused on her figure as she went about playing with her own measuring tape, helping other students. Her jet-black hair was up in that strict ponytail as usual, but there were a few strands hanging loose. And it was messy, almost as if someone had ruffled it by a teensy bit. Instantly, Rukawa felt something inside of him spark.

Was it some other guy trying to be funny?

And what was this strange emotion coming over him?

Pushing away all these untimely thoughts, Rukawa got back on his job. Whatever it was, he could deal with it later.

The surly-looking student nearly died of strangulation.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Akagi's brows knit in bemusement. There was something very strange going on here. A rare phenomenon was taking over Shohoku High.

All his key players, save Mitsui, were not concentrating, at all.

This was the tenth time that Miyagi had missed a lay-up shot.

Sakuragi was in no spirits to do a single slamdunk.

And Rukawa, surprises of surprises, had been missing five out of ten shots so far. Also, he wasn't up to his super rookie standards.

This was a problem.

Another ball had been shot through the hoop. It was Mitsui on a three-pointer.

"What's going on?" he boomed as they sat on the bleachers for a break. "What do you guys think you're doing? I've never seen any team play so badly before!"

Nothing was said in response. The three sat glumly, squeezing water from their bottles and into their mouths. Mitsui, however, was wiping away his sweat and going up to this girl. Akagi gave it to him; he did deserve some award for at least working as hard as he would on any other day.

When Yukiko came round with the drinks, he declined grimly. Akagi also noticed how there was an awkward exchange of uncertain looks between the two when she got to Rukawa. Lifting a concerned brow, he let out a sigh.  

"Look," he tried the less harsh approach, "is there something disturbing you guys?"

Each of them gave him their own silent 'no's, and Akagi knew that something was definitely up. He folded his arms across his chest as Mitsui came along and sat down beside them, looking depressed. Great, another one.

"I'm going to give you guys a day off, go sort things out by yourselves," Akagi said in dismissal, despaired.

  


_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Mitsui had a towel hung from his neck with a squeeze-bottle in hand.

Kimiko was here to watch them practice, just like Ayako had promised.

The other guys hadn't been as focused today, but that was far from Mitsui's mind. Here was his chance, and he wasn't going to let it pass by. Baring in mind that he had to thank Miyagi, and comfort him for whatever reason there seems to be existent, he went up to the redhead. Ayako threw him a wink.

"Hi," he greeted, feeling his heartbeat increase to a rapid speed.

"Hey," she responded with so smile whatsoever. Mitsui would have quirked a brow. This female should be the **real** female version of Rukawa. Her coldness and seeming want not to be associated with anybody was just like Rukawa.

"How did you like the practice," he asked, attempting to strike up a conversation.

"I'm not interested in the sport," she stated, arms folded.

"Oh," as the only thing he could manage. Okay, so she didn't like basketball. Lots of people didn't. Big deal. "Then, what sport interests you?"

Kimiko's emerald green eyes bore into his own. "Mitsui…sempai, I'll tell you one thing. Don't try to impress me like that. I'm not after great basketball stars or MVPs." With that, Kimiko said a bleak goodbye and stalked out of the gym, leaving Mitsui's jaw hanging open.

Exactly where had he gone wrong?

@,'--,'--,'--,'-

ARGH! Who **is** this Kimiko person anyway? (I have no idea. Just came up with her one day and got stuck on it…)

Now that all our poor, poor babies are feeling down in the dumps, well… … you'll just hafta wait and see.

Feel kinda sorry for Mitsui _

So it's not Valentine's yet and I should be writing a Christmas fic, shouldn't I? *shrug* dun care. Got one Christmas fic down for FoR so, yah, writing another Christmas fic sounds a tad bit tiresome to me. Gomen, not in the mood.

Anyhow, happy early Christmas to all you guys.

God bless you, one and all.

©Copyrighted by JadOo Enterprises 2002


	13. Valentine's Special Part II

**Melting Ice  
**_Valentine's Special Part II  
 There's a Time for Apologies, And a Time for Healing_

Disclaimer: Please spare me from writing any more disclaimers. None of the charas off SlamDunk belong to me. Not now, not ever…

Got LUNA SEA and L'arc en Ciel (however you spell their names) blasting on my speakers right now!! ^^

Hahaha…feeling kinda happy becoz I just finished my assignment of typing like 20+ pages of words…really, I think the keyboard is my NEW best friend…hehz, no lahz…just that it's easier to touch-type now…

@,'--,'--,'--,'-

I can see what's happenin' (What?)  
And they don't have a clue (Who?)  
They'll fall in love and here's the bottom line…  
Our trio's down to two (Oh…)  
The sweet caress of twilight  
There's magic everywhere  
And with all this romantic atmosphere  
DISASTER'S IN THE AIR!  
_- Lion King___

"So?"

"So."

"So?!"

"So."

"SO!!?"

"So I am not going to do anymore of this nonsense." Ayako stared dumbfounded at her friend, whose arms were folded indignantly across her chest.

"B..But…" she began, trying to find something to say.

"But nothing," Kimiko stated most firmly. She released her arms from their locked position and proceeded to place her hands on both of Ayako's shoulders. "Listen, Aya-chan, I would do anything, **anything**, for you. I would hide you from Ryota, lie for you, fight for you - **anything**. But this, this is something quite out of range."

"OUT OF RANGE? How out of range can befriending someone be?" Ayako demanded, looking Kimiko squarely in the eye.

Kimiko let out a puff of air and turned away from Ayako. "You know that I don't like mixing around with people all too much, and you know that I really can't stand Mitsui Hisashi either, so why're you trying to get me hitched with him?"

"I'm not trying to get you 'hitched' with him!" she protested. "I'm merely trying to let you two get to know each other."

"Yes, but why **him** of _all_ people?" Kimiko demanded, arms back in position.

Ayako exhaled. She didn't know why either. Just because Mitsui sneaked up on her and asked her for help with Kimiko didn't justify her reason to help him so eagerly either. And then again, maybe she wasn't doing it for Mitsui. Maybe she was doing it for Kimiko. "Well," she began, challenging her best friend with the exact same stance, "maybe it's because he's nice, and maybe because it's high time that you get a proper social life."

Kimiko snorted. "You mean it's high time for me to get a boyfriend."

Ayako felt somewhat relieved that Kimiko got the drift and nodded in response.

Kimiko, however, shook her head amusedly. "Okay," she said, "I'll do it. BUT, only on one condition."

Her best friend was listening.

"You have to go to the ball with Ryota."

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Rukawa's eyes were closed, mind concentrated on the music blasting in his ears. He was on his bike, whizzing through streets and not sparing much of a thought for people gasping an "eep" and hastening to get out of the way.

No, he was too troubled to do that.

Bobbing his head to the music, he turned into a lane. He was familiar with all the streets in this neighbourhood and more so with the route he took to and fro from work. Carefully, he brought down the pace of the bicycle to a leisurely ride. This road tended to be crowded since the arrival of his father. The bakery was situated here.

He could hear some female voices in the background; their humming was slightly louder than his music. Out of a moment's curiosity, he peeked open an eyelid and jammed the breaks.

Someone was in his direct path, bent over and tying shoelaces.

The bike skidded to a halt mere inches away from the innocent shoelace-tier. Rukawa's eyes blinked open.

"Hey," a familiar voice chiding accusingly, "my first day here and you're trying to kill me already?"

Rukawa lifted his head slowly to come face to face with a brunet boy with blue orbs. Stunned, he blinked.

What on earth was that blasted brother of Yukiko doing here!?

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Miyagi slumped into a seat and cast an uninterested eye at the menu.

"Welcome to Moshi-moshi Ice Cream Parlour! May I take your order?" a waitress, donned in a red dress and frilly white apron chirped as she positioned her pencil on her notebook, ready to scribble down any and everything he said. Deadpanned, Miyagi read a random order off the menu and handed the laminated sheet of paper back to her.

Resting his chin on an open palm, he stared out the window.

Although his eyes were fixed on people going about their everyday lives, his mind was whirring with thoughts of a single person. He was confused and very much upset. Why hadn't Ayako said anything in response to his question? Didn't she hear him on the many occasions when he had asked her out to the Valentine's ball? Yet, the basketball team manageress had not brought up the topic of the ball and refused to give him an answer.

His patience was wearing thin, and Miyagi knew it. He needed to know as soon as possible. He needed to know exactly what Ayako thought about him and whether she was going to accept him as more than just a friend.

And of course, it didn't help when she tried avoiding him at every chance possible. That best friend of hers was always more than happy to disclose misleading whereabouts of Ayako, telling him that Ayako had turned into the left hallway, when in actual fact, she had turned the other way. Kimiko was probably the only thing that stood between him and his chance to get together with Ayako.

To top that, one of his good friends was after that same girl who irritated him on sight.

A voice snapped him out of his musings, "Mind if I sit here?"

Miyagi cast an eye to the tall figure that towered over the table and gave a meek nod. It was terribly difficult to refuse Mitsui at times. The blue-hair boy sat across him, placing his bag on the empty space. He took a hurried order and faced Miyagi in all seriousness.

"You know, you're right." Miyagi looked at Mitsui, bemused. "She really is… I don't really know her," he elaborated, swiping a hand through his hair as he did so.

Miyagi gave him a brief I-told-you-so smile. He didn't even need to ask who 'she' was.

Silence settled between the two of them for a long while before the same waitress came along with their orders on a tray. Almost immediately, the two of them tucked in.

Miyagi swallowed his ice cream in distaste. What in the **world** had he ordered anyway? Resisting the urge to let out some undigested remains, he sat back and examined the green blob with the cherry on top. It tasted nothing like ice cream. Nothing like the ice cream he had grown up with, at least.

"It's green tea," his answer came. Miyagi lifted his puzzled gaze to the male sitting opposite him. Mitsui had a smirk to his countenance. "You ordered Green Tea Bland Mix, Miyagi. Something must truly be on your mind."

Miyagi scowled and dumped his spoon in the sundae cup, pushing the ice cream away in rejection.

Rejection. That word held a whole lot of meaning to him. Miyagi bit his lip, and then pulled the ice cream back toward him. He wouldn't like anyone, or anything to go through the painful process of rejection. He bit meaningfully into the bitter mass.

"It must be Ayako," Mitsui finally said, scraping off the bit of chocolate fudge oozing down the mound of his ice cream. Miyagi's head snapped up to glance sharply at Mitsui. The older boy ate his chocolate fudge and paused, taking full note that he had caught his junior's attention. "What has Ayako said?"

Miyagi's eyes looked down at his own pathetic ice cream. "Nothing," he replied, dejectedly jabbing at the forlorn green mass.

"Well," Mitsui risked a smile, "at least it's better than being rejected in the face."

Hn. What would Mitsui know anything about a quiet rejection? He didn't have to see Kimiko everyday and live in slow wonder of whether she gave a damn at all about him. He didn't need to suffer the prolonged pain that Miyagi was now going through. And he didn't need to face the full blast of rejection after months of agony.

Mitsui had probably only noticed Kimiko a month or so ago. Miyagi had had his likes for Ayako since his first day of school in Shohoku High.

Mitsui exhaled deeply, "Let's face it, Miyagi. You and I are both losers."

"Yeah," Miyagi agreed. He should have known so much earlier and tried for someone else. But he **did** do that. He did try to woo other girls but was turned down every other time. And the sad truth was, both him and those girls knew who he really liked from the bottom of his heart.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

"You want one?" Rukawa shook his head in response to the question. "Sure? They're really good." earned another grim shake of the head. Fujima shrugged and bit into the bread.

They were seated on a park bench with Rukawa's bicycle leant against a tree. Fujima, having taken the opportunity to buy some munchies, was eating bread like there was no tomorrow. And of course, he was trying to share his joy, but wasn't most successful.

Rukawa let out a breath of air. This was far from what he had expected to do. He had meant to turn into his workplace even though it was his off day and he needed something to take his mind of the frustrations that refused to part from him. The fact that Fujima was a link to one of his biggest frustrations did not help all too much.

He sat back into the wooden bench, arms folded, legs crossed and with no trace of a smile upon his face.

"I'm sure you'd like to know why I brought you here," Fujima finally said, putting aside ten plastic wrappers. Rukawa looked at him from the corner of his eyes. Fujima was looking at him with all seriousness. The light-hearted air had vanished. "Remember I told you that if anything happens to my sister, you'd be the first to answer? Well, something has happened."

Rukawa sat up a little straighter. One part of his mind annoyed that another disturbance had come up and _again_ it was with relation to Yukiko. Yet another was in a frenzy of thoughts, thinking of all the things that could have happened to her to make her brother have a man-to-man talk with him. What had happened to her, and why wasn't he informed earlier?

Fujima watched as Rukawa's face turned toward him and the boy's body shifted in all earnestness to listen.

He looked Rukawa in the eye and told him, "I have never, in all my life, seen my sister in a state where she would even think of throwing a pillow. In other words, she's frustrated," he added when Rukawa obviously didn't quite get what he meant. [AN: That was lame, I know.]

At that, Rukawa sat back. Who wasn't frustrated nowadays? There was a Valentine's Ball, probably the most uninteresting thing on earth, coming up to haunt him, more irritating girls swooning at him and attempting to have him accept them as his date, less basketball practices to help him take his mind off things, and of course, the strange tension that had suddenly appeared in his relationship with Yukiko.

"I don't know what has happened," Fujima prompted, "I've just reached this place and Yukiko isn't giving me straight answers; she's in confusion."

What was Rukawa to say? He was in a state of perplexity too. He was trying to get adjusted to life with a father who had admittedly killed tens of people and was the very cause of his mother's and sister's deaths. He was struggling to take things as they were, and believe him, it wasn't that easy. Sometimes, Rukawa had felt as though he were in a dream and that he would wake up to find that all these things never took place. And now, he was trying really hard to understand, to fathom this person Yukiko.

"Can you tell me the situation? The details?" Fujima persisted.

Rukawa said nothing for a while. His mind was pondering the exact same question too. What was the cause of all this uninvited strain? When did it happen? How did it start? Why did it start? Who caused it?

If he'd known better, Rukawa would've felt like a detective.

"I don't know either," he replied frankly. "She… we haven't talked…"

Fujima "ahh"ed and opened another bag full of buns. Lack of communication, was it? Hmm…

"So," he decided to change the topic, "I heard that there's something special going-on on Valentine's Day."

Rukawa frowned. Oh yes, that too. "It's stupid, believe me."

Fujima smiled. He would have thought the same thing if he were in Rukawa's shoes. Life as a bishonen never gave one a break, and surely wasn't going to when something like this came up. It was a free invitation for girls. "And who're you planning to go with?" he queried, taking an interested bite in the new pizza bun.

Nobody Rukawa hoped. He would like to go alone or preferably not at all. But rules are rules, and not getting a dance partner meant one being an open dance partner for any and every girl that wished to get their claws on him. Great, another problem.

But as he thought about it, it became clear to Rukawa that his dance partner issue should have been long settled with. He would not accompany any other girl except the one he had shared a close bond with. And of course, never would he dream of escorting one of those ditzy girls who were in dire need of an aim in life.

Then again, he couldn't unless issues were resolved.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Ayako checked the hallway one last time before turning into it. 

Often she had been in this state of wariness. This time, however, the cause was different. She still didn't want to see Miyagi, not because of the fear of what he may do, but of what she was going to say. 

She'd promised to help Mitsui, and then agreed to Kimiko's challenge of going to the dance with Miyagi. Somehow, the latter was much more difficult. All credit went to her best friend who knew of all ways to put her in a spot.

She saw his figure nearing the turn and immediately pressed herself against the wall. Think, Ayako, think. How to get out of this spot… It was too late to turn the other way, because he curly brown hair was noticeable from practically anywhere. And of course, she couldn't bump right straight into him.

Ayako's time soon ran out, his bread-head was already poking into the corridor.

She held her breath and bit her lip as he turned into her corridor. She saw as he lifted her head to see her and dared not move. And what happened next surprised her: Miyagi just glance at her forlornly and then refused to look at her again, not even saying a greeting of "Aya-chan."

Ayako did not know whether to be relieved or a wee bit worried. Miyagi was never in this state before.

Something inside her stirred, Ayako had no idea what.

And for a very short moment, she wished she'd agreed to go with him to the Valentine's Ball earlier. 

Much earlier.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

The moment Mitsui stepped into the dance studio he knew that the day would not go in his favour.

A fresh batch of students were in line waiting to be received and taught the basic dance steps so that the ball wouldn't be a total flop. Kogure was giving the entire Dance Committee a pep talk and that girl, Naomi, was much quieter than before. And he had a pretty good idea why. As Kimiko and Ayako were the best of friends, so were Naomi and Yukiko. He'd heard of the issue going on between the two Year 1 lovebirds, and he was pretty sure Naomi had too.

"Mitsui, you're late," was Kogure's form of a scolding. But Kogure being Kogure, the boy would not raise his voice, ever. He was perhaps one of the only people that Mitsui could not imagine getting angry.

A quarter of the sophomore cohort were scheduled to be taught today, and as Mitsui scanned his eyes down the list, a name sprang up to life and pulsated in front of his eyes. Maehara Kimiko, it read.

Mitsui swallowed and closed his eyes. He knew from Ayako that Kimiko was a punctual person and would probably be one of the firsts to make it to the dance studio on time. Also, being in a bad state of confusion, Mitsui's last wish was to see the very cause of his dejectedness. He remembered what Miyagi had said about Kimiko, and regretted not taking heed. To some extent, however, he had gotten the impression that what Miyagi didn't like about Kimiko was not her very character, but something else instead.

"Kimiko-sempai!" Mitsui gulped upon hearing her name being chirped by some other committee member. "You're early. Come on in!"

Pushing back the urge to turn around and look full in her face, Mitsui turned to the right instead and sat in an inconspicuous corner of the studio. He couldn't face what she would say or not say to him.

He watched as people went up to her in attempts to strike up conversation. She would respond with short answers, preferring not to talk too much. Mitsui observed her habit of raking her hands through her straight red hair. And then of course, was her pathetic attempt at following the dance procedure. He stifled a laugh; giving away his position was the last thing he needed.

But as he watched her, Mitsui tried finding something, anything to dislike about her. He needed a distraction to convince him that she was not as he had pictured her in his mind's eye. He needed to be able to prove that she was as despise-able as Miyagi had said she was. Yet Mitsui found none.

He continued his close scrutiny until Kogure, being the blur fellow that he was, accidentally gave him away.

"Are, where's Mitsui?"

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Everytime he had tried to approach Yukiko, Rukawa had found himself dumb - unable to say anything or use his brain to think up something to say.

Or maybe it was that strange aura that now hung around her, daring him to take one step closer and almost promising a deadpan response. Or perhaps no response.

She was boxing herself in from him, Rukawa could tell. An invisible wall had been built between them, and they needed to demolish it. **He** needed to demolish it. He didn't want to go to the ball with someone he didn't like. And of course, he needed to mend this growing hole because… because he was uncomfortable. Because he couldn't stand it that… that…

That what?

In a moment of lost concentration, the needle pricked him. Rukawa's hand recoiled from the cloth, although that didn't do much good - the needle remained protruding out of his finger. He glowered at the guilty needle, as though it would melt right there and then and wish it had never existed, before carefully plucking it out of the layers of rough skin.

Somehow, Rukawa felt stupid. Amidst all his pondering, he was sewing in the classroom. **Sewing** – something that had always been considered a woman's work had been pushed to him to do. It wasn't much, really. In actual fact, he was just doing the tacking. But still, it was a tad bit ridiculous.

There was blood oozing from the atom-sized wound. Rukawa speared the needle back into the cushion and sucked on his finger, tasting the salty blood on his tongue.

"Don't do that." A band-aid was stuck in front of his eyes and Rukawa released his finger.

"Domo," he muttered, taking the plaster and proceeding to tear away the layer of paper. He hadn't even bothered to see who had given him the band-aid. This distraction was more important to him. And, although he would never admit it, he feared that the person who had given him medication was the exact one he was troubling over. He did as best a job as he could with one hand and four fingers, but fumbled carelessly with it.

Yukiko groaned at the boy's inability to take care of himself at times and offered to do something as simple as bandaging his finger for him. Rukawa hadn't blatantly refused her help, but flinched ever so slightly with each bold contact their fingertips made.

"Arigato," he said as he withdrew his hand. His injured finger brushed against hers for a split-second, and Rukawa felt something inside him tingle.

She left abruptly, choosing her chores over him. 

Rukawa felt something inside him spark, somewhat upset.

Rukawa frowned. Never before had he been in such a state of perplexity.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Akagi stopped Sakuragi just before the boy stepped out of the school for lunch. He needed a little chat with Sakuragi.

"Gori," the redhead acknowledged his presence, "whaddya want?"

"I want to ask you something." He saw Sakuragi blink up at, uncertainty clearly written over his face. Akagi gulped, knowing that the question he was about to ask Sakuragi was ludicrous. Not to mention that he felt rather out-of-place to ask it. 

"No time, Gori. Got errands to do," came Sakuragi's answer, which earned him an instant whack on the head.

"I said I want to ask you something."

Having been warned that the question was something of importance, Sakuragi rubbed the fresh bump on his head and kept ruefully silent, waiting for his captain to say threw whatever question it was, answer it, and get out of the way.

Akagi took in a breath before continuing. "Do you intent to take my imouto to the Valentine's Ball?"

A flush of red came over Sakuragi's face as he turned away. Did he? Of course he did! The first person that came into his mind when this whole Valentine's Ball thing was mentioned was none other than Haruko herself. Who else was he to take anyway? Ayako was out of the question (Miyagi would have had his head anyway), that girl Yukiko who bring a fight with the Kitsune and beside that, Sakuragi did not know many girls.

But, intending to take someone somewhere was one thing; actually performing the act would mean the other party's consent. And that he was not going to get in the near future. Uh uh, not while Rukawa Kaede was around to steal the attention he so rightly deserved.

His blush gone, Sakuragi returned Akagi with a nod of the head. He didn't want to talk about this. "If that answers your question, Akagi-san, I will take my leave."

Sakuragi left Akagi speechless, walking off to wherever he had meant to go in the first place.

Akagi didn't know what to think. Something had to be very wrong with that boy in order for Sakuragi to call him "Akagi-san".

His attitude gave the basketball captain an issue to ponder on for the next week.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Two figures huddled together in the dark recesses of the room. One of them flicked a lighter and put the fire to a candle.

"Ready to report?" she whispered.

"Of course. You?" the other said.

"As ever. You start."

"Why me?"

"Because… oh, just start. You'll hear my contribution anyway."

"Alright." Kimiko took in a deep breath, but not before checking their surroundings. They were in one of the broom closets. And if you asked her, hiding in these dark, musty places seemed like a silly idea. But that was probably where they would not get so much attention that they obviously didn't need. Shifting her leg so it wouldn't cramp, she gave her best friend the latest news: "It isn't as easy as I had thought it'd be."

"So what you mean is, you can't finish your half of the deal."

"Yes," she hissed, slightly annoyed at Ayako rubbing into it. After all, her best friend had been the one to come up with this notion, not her. "And you?" she nearly scoffed, knowing that Ayako probably hadn't gone very far either.

Ayako sighed, causing the flame to flicker. "I don't think I'll be able to carry out my part either."

Triumphant, Kimiko smiled. "So we can call this off, right?"

"No," her friend said hastily.

Kimiko folded her arms across her chest, bemused. She'd thought that Ayako would have been perfectly happy to know that they could call this whole thing off, and personally, the current unease she felt around Mitsui nowadays was beginning to make her sick. Take for example, earlier on when she was in the dance studio. She had no idea that the jerk was there at all, and she could have sworn that Mitsui was probably laughing his head off as he observed her attempts at dancing. Damn him. It wasn't her fault that she didn't know how to dance!

She wanted out of this deal right about NOW. "Why not?"

"Because…" Ayako bit her lip, and if she hadn't been holding the aflame candle, she would have twirled her hair around her index finger, as was her habit when she got nervous. "Because I promised Mitsui that I'd help him," she ended. That sounded safe enough, right? And Kimiko was a person who honoured promises and expected the same.

But Kimiko had always been one to spot the loophole. "And you have done that – help him. It didn't work out, so big deal. Let's just call off this nonsense. Unless…" There was a mischievous glint in her best friend's eye that Ayako didn't like.

"Un-Unless what?" she stammered.

Kimiko had this grin on her face as she scrutinized Ayako. "Aya-chan," she drawled lazily, "there isn't supposed to be any secrets, **any** at all, between us."

"I'm not hiding anything from you," she retorted defiantly. "I **am** trying to uphold my promise to Mitsui."

Kimiko shifted again. Where was the frankness that she and Ayako always had? It was obvious that her best friend was keeping something from her, and she had a pretty good idea what it was. The refusal to break out of the agreement either meant that Ayako was dying to please Mitsui, or on the other hand, she wanted to dance with Miyagi Ryota. Anyhow, Kimiko had no intention of forcing it from Ayako. Knowing the woman, Ayako would probably build up her emotional shields and refuse to let Kimiko in on secrets.

"Okay then," she relented, "I'll take your word for it." With that, she let out a heavy puff of air. 

And all went dark.

"That was _so_ smart, Kimiko." Sarcasm was, after all, an integral part of Ayako's nature.

"We~ell, we'll have to get out of here sooner or later."

Ayako hadn't heard that. She "eep"ed as something landed on her shoulder. 

Kimiko had heard her friend 'eep'ing and took a closer look. "Aya-chan," she breathed, "there's something on your shoulder."

"I know. Can you see what it is?" Ayako whispered, hoping not to provoke whatever it was. She hoped it wasn't a spider. If there was anything in this world that she couldn't stand, it was spiders. 

"Hold on," came Kimiko's voice as the girl peered at the object, aided by the sliver of light the shone through the gap between door and wall. She stiffened when it dawned upon her what that thing was. "Okay, don't move," she prompted, taking the candlestick from Ayako and tightening her grip on it. Warily she raised it to swat at the thing.

"What is it?" Ayako urged, ruffled by Kimiko's reaction.

"Don't scream," was Kimiko's warning. "I think it's a spider."

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Here he was again. 

Up on the rooftop, his favourite place. It was where the sun shone in all its fiery. And, coincidentally, it was where the softest of breezes blew and also the coolest of places when it rained.

The sky was cloudy today, blocking out the heat of the sun.

Rukawa lay back onto the hard concrete, unafraid to gaze right up into the sky. There was no threat of sun.

He hadn't noticed, during all those times that he had spent right here up on the school's rooftop, how beautiful the sky could prove to be. The swirls of white in all that blueness, the light that emanated from it – all these looked like something only seen in famous artworks. He hadn't thought that the sky could be so much more real.

A bird flew past, adding to his scope of 'scenery'. Imagine that, this was where poets got their inspiration. This was where artists felt at home, painting what they saw in an attempt to show everyone else the beauty that had been revealed unto them. Rukawa laid still as a gentle breeze blew past, causing his hair to sweep over his face.

He closed his eyes, relaxed. The week had proved challenging – physically, mentally, emotionally. He was exhausted after bouts of internal struggle, series of questioning.

He needed a break, and this was as close as he got to it.

Rukawa's rest was disturbed by soft footsteps as they made their way toward him. He turned over to his side and curled up a little. Rukawa knew those footsteps. He could recognise them anytime, anywhere. 

It seemed his 'break' was to come to an end. And it hadn't even lasted ten minutes.

"You forgot this." Something was placed just against his head. Rukawa peeked open an eye. Only a plain bento was in his line of vision. Rukawa closed his eyes again, not keen on opening the bento and devouring whatever was inside. He knew that his father had probably stuffed a couple of sandwiches inside what was supposed to be a Japanese meal; Kyoshiro often brought back free food.

He rolled over to his other side and came into contact was something else, something more solid. Curious, Rukawa opened his eyes and shut them almost immediately. Staring up a pair of porcelain white thighs was not what he had expected. He took in a deep breath, banishing all sorts of unnecessary and unwanted thoughts to the back of his mind. That was the last thing on earth that he needed.

Rukawa rolled onto his back and sat up, staring hard at his bento and refusing to face her direction. Unable to fathom the sudden change in rhythm of his heart, Rukawa scratched the back of his head and snatched up his bento. He wolfed it down after which.

"'Kaasan and Kenji came over last Friday." She was still patiently kneeled on the cement flooring. Her head was cocked slightly to the side; she wanted to obtain a better look at him. But when Rukawa looked up, her eyes flew to the grayish ground.

"Sou…" was the only word that escaped from his mouth. Despite the millions of questions buzzing in his head, none of those came from his parted lips. The sun was peeking from behind the clouds, and so Rukawa got up and made his way to the sheltered area.

He waited for her as she got up and brushed her skirt before heading towards his desired destination.

"I heard that Kyoshiro-san has gotten a job at the bakery," she said. Rukawa didn't fail to notice that she was making small talk.

It was to get him to converse too. No wonder - a whole week of silence between the two must have been disturbing for her as it had been for him.

"He earns them twice the customers," was his only comment on the subject. Yukiko gave a small laugh.

And Rukawa Kaede smiled.

He would have reached over to push back that stray hair that fell over her cheek. But, as always, the bell rang.

Letting out a soft sigh, he rose from his seat against the wall. Rukawa frowned. Always, the school bell would disturb their moments on the rooftop. For the second time that day, he stuck his hands in his pocket, patiently allowing Yukiko to take her time to be neat and precise.

And then the two walked out of the door that led to the rooftop.

Together.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

If there was ever a person who could top the Shohoku's gossip world, it was Mara.

"I swear, he was definitely trying his very best not to stare at me." She paused a little, allowing her girls to squeal in delight at the picture of Rukawa they had never seen.

"Mara-san, he wouldn't," gasped one of them.

"He must have looked absolutely gorgeous Mara-sempai," squealed another.

"You're so lucky!"

She cleared her throat, signalling for all of them to be silent. "And, of course, that Watanabe girl was there as well. She was probably resisting the urge to strangle and choke me for all that she was worth – which is nothing. Rukawa was glancing at her often, comparing her to the likes of me," she emphasized her words with swift movements of her hands here and there.

"Not **that** girl," one grimaced.

"She's the one who's been hogging Rukawa-kun all to herself," commented another.

"It beats me how she could even get close to Rukawa-sempai," said one, placing a disgusted look on her face.

"You so much better compared to her, Mara-san," one of them fawned. Mara rolled her eyes and turned back to the other students.

"But you know, Rukawa can be very bold at times. He, like, wanted me to take _his_ measurements for him when he handed me the measuring tape. And he was so shy about it too," she continued, feeding her intense listeners with new information. None of which was true, a part of her refused to admit.

"I thought so."

"Rukawa-sempai can be so manly, ne?" The girl gazed dreamily into space.

"Ooooh, how I would like to have been in your place, Mara-san."

She smiled. Yes, how others would liked to have been in her place, mere inches away from the bishonen of the school. How they would like to have her status, popular enough to even attract the attention of The Rukawa Kaede. So many were willing to listen to her, and to top that, they believed her words without question.

And so she let the game get a little carried away. "I heard Kasura-san say that Watanabe Yukiko had viciously attacked her and vented her frustrations on her after that. She said her outfit for the prom would probably be too tight, and it would be Yukiko's fault."

The small buzzing from the Rukawa Fanclub grew louder as the girls discussed this Watanabe Yukiko and poisonous words were spat here and there. Some were lies, others were merely distorted truths – close enough, but still untrue. 

Once again, Mara smiled that sly smile of hers. What a scene she had created, all of them up and against that girl Yukiko.

She would do anything to obtain Rukawa Kaede and have him boost her reputation. How she would love the most popular boy in school to be licking her feet, wrapped around her little finger. Only then would she be satisfied with what she had. Only then.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

"I said I was sorry."

Ayako's scowl did not waver. "Sorry" did not help the fact that there once was a spider on her shoulder. "Sorry" didn't stop the candlestick from aiming her shoulder. "Sorry" did nothing to ease the bruise forming on her shoulder. And "sorry" wasn't going to help make her fear of spiders _and_ her newfound fear of Kimiko disappear into thin air.

Also, "sorry" happened to be the cause of them tumbling out the broom closet and finding themselves in the principal's office. Not to mention spooning a nice serving of embarrassment on the side.

Matsushita-sensei massaged his weary brow, tired of watching two high school girls caught in an argument. "Girls," he spoke, causing both of them to 'meep' and quiet down, "I don't care why you were in the closet or who advocated it in the first place. My question is: what are you two going to do about the mess in the corridor?" 

"Err…clean it up?" suggested Ayako.

He raised one ageing brow. "I'm quite sure that has been done."

"Great, then we **don't** have to clean it up," Kimiko said.

"Considering that you weren't supposed to be in the broom closet at all, not doing anything is too light a judgement, don't you think?"

"No," Kimiko responded, blithely unaware. 

Matsushita-sensei's stern glance turned itself on her. "Maehara-san," he warned.

"Well then," Ayako quickly cut in. As much as she was upset with her best friend, she didn't want Kimiko to be in big trouble with the principal. Honestly, as if angering one person wasn't enough. "What do you propose we do, Sensei?"

Matsushita-sensei's deep brown eyes glazed over for a moment as he thought of the possible punishments for them to carry out. There was just one criterion, however, that was a tad bit difficult to fulfil. He needed to make sure both them and the school benefited from whatever it was that these two girls were to do. It didn't make very much sense that punishments had to be this propitious.

He thought briefly of the upcoming Valentine's Ball. Were there any other empty places needed to be filled?

Something clicked in his mind. Of course, how could I have forgotten?

"Well," he began, carefully placing his fingertips against one another, "there is one thing: we have a need for emcees for the Valentine's Ball."

"What!" was the unanimous response from the two girls.

Matsushita-sensei gave a grave nod of his head.

"But, surely there _must_ be something else for us to do," Ayako tried reasoning.

"Aya-chan's right," chorused Kimiko. She hated associating with people and being in places with millions of other human beings. And having to be up on stage will hundreds of pairs of eyes staring up at you, scrutinizing you, judging you was even more detestable.

"I'm afraid not," he said.

"But, sensei," Ayako protested, "I have too many duties on hand!"

"Such as?" he raised a challenging brow, daring her to say any more.

Well, Ayako took up the challenge. "I'm in charge of the Clothes Committee. That with the weight of an emcee's work would be too much."

The principal sat back in his chair, considering this new revelation. "What about Maehara-san? Does she have a weighty responsibility as well?"

The redhead blinked at the mention of her name. A soft "what" escaped her lips, and she found herself listening to a repeat of the words that Matsushita-sensei had just spoken. A sheepish grin placed itself on Kimiko's face. Up till now, nobody had known her committee. And the answer was actually quite simple. She didn't know what committee she was in either. The organisers had overlooked her. 

And she had wanted it to stay that way. 

Kimiko bit her lip and lowered her emerald orbs. "I haven't a committee," she admitted. Beside her, she could hear Ayako gasp.

Matsushita-sensei 'hmm'ed his interest, settling his elbows down on his table. The situation had gone admirably in his favour. He had intended for there to be only one female emcee in the first place, and a male to accompany her. With the arrival of Ayako's status in the committee, the girl had been voted off the emcee list, leaving Maehara Kimiko. And now that he knew she was free to be the emcee, all he needed was one of the boys…

"That is very well, Maehara-san," he said crisply. "Ayako-san will revert back to her old duties as head of the committee. As for you, Maehara Kimiko, you will take position as emcee." He paused, allowing an exchange of glances between the two girls. "But, as traditions go, you will need a male counterpart – an issue which I will settle later. Unless," he quirked a brow, "you have anyone in mind." 

This was an open opportunity for Ayako to get back at Kimiko. Snapping her fingers as a sudden idea had struck her mind, she said, "Sensei, I believe I know of someone who could take up that position."

Kimiko nearly pounced on her to shut her up. But not in the presence of their principal. Such childish behaviour would be a disgrace.

Matushita-sensei gestured for her to continue. 

"I'm quite sure that Mitsui Hisashi would make a great candidate."

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

"Sakuragi-kun! Sakuragi-kun!"

Sakuragi was knocked right out of his daydream as he realised that the voice he heard wasn't that of the one inside his mind. 

"Haruko-chan," he greeted as the petite girl made her way toward him. He watched the brown hair swish from side to side and blue eyes blink ever so often. Sakuragi clenched his fist.

"Ne, Sakuragi-kun, have you seen Rukawa-kun?"

His knuckles grew white. Rukawa again. Everything was about Rukawa. Everywhere he went, no matter who he was talking to, Rukawa was bound to come into topic. It was always "Rukawa this" or "Rukawa that". He was sick of it! Enough about Rukawa! What about him? What about his rebounding skills? What about him who just started basketball yet made it into the team within less than a year? Sakuragi was sure that Rukawa had taken longer than that.

"I haven't, Haruko-chan," he said evenly, voice betraying his anger and frustration. "Why?"

Haruko brought up her hand to reveal the letter that was clutched in it. The envelope was pink with flowery words spelling out Rukawa's name. Sakuragi glared at it, as though he had the laser eyes of Superman. "This…uh, one of the girls asked me to pass it to him if I saw him. I'm usually at basketball practice to watch you guys, you see, so she thought it'd be easy to get it to Rukawa through me. And I obliged so…" The rest was self-explanatory.

Sakuragi snorted inwardly. 

She had probably written it for him and was cooking up this excuse to - 

He caught himself there and then. What was that? He was actually making blind accusations about Haruko. She wouldn't lie to him, or to anyone for that matter. How could he even let this bitterness he held for Rukawa burn into his affections for Haruko?

Sakuragi turned to the wall and banged his head against it. Over and over – this was his penalty for having badmouthing Haruko (well, sort of).

"Sakuragi-kun! Stop! Stop!" Haruko called out, flustered. 

He turned BIG blue and watering eyes to her. "No," he cried, "I have done something unforgivable!"

"Sakuragi-kun," she said again, brow twisted, "_please_, stop."

His head stopped in mid-air. She'd gone as far as to say please. To beg of him. Oh how he wished the wall would punish him once again for doing yet another unforgivable act. 

"Are you okay," she inquired worriedly, wincing at the bump forming on his forehead.

"Iya," he scratched the back of his head, "that was nothing." How embarrassing! And in front of Haruko too!

Haruko still looked uncertain. Wrinkling her nose, she gave the red bump one last look. "If you say so…"

Sakuragi's heart swelled. She cares for me! How sweet! Oh, Haruko-chan~

"Ne," Haruko started as they walked through the corridors in search of Rukawa, "Sakuragi-kun, have you asked anyone to the Valentine's Ball yet?"

He stopped in mid-step. "What?" he blinked.

"I said…" He knew what she said, dammit. He had heard every word and because of those words he was unmoving like a stone statue, frozen in position. It was as though someone had poured quick-drying cement over his form.

Here was his chance. He wanted to ask her. He had wanted to ask her a very long time ago. The first name that had popped into his mind was "Haruko-chan". Not 'Akagi Haruko', mind you. Remembering the gori and that this dear girl was actually his sister wasn't the most pleasant thought that entered Sakuragi's mind. He would only recognise her as that: Haruko-chan.  

And now, the same Haruko-chan was giving him a free invitation to ask her to be his dance partner. Or date, rather.

"No, not yet," Sakuragi said, clearing his throat. Now was the time to ask her. Sakuragi Hanamichi cleared his throat and started in his most manly voice, "Haruko-chan, would you like to…"

"Do you think you could go with me?" she cut, blinking innocently up at him.

"What?" he'd said for the second time.

"Well…" she bit her lip. She was sure Sakuragi was quite surprised too, but there really wasn't anyone to go with her. And as much as she wanted to go with Rukawa, she knew that he wouldn't ask her; she knew that Rukawa had someone else in mind. After all, Yukiko was probably the only girl that could converse so freely with him. Sometimes, Haruko could feel a twinge a jealously inside her. "I just thought, since no one's asked me, I might as well…"

"Of course I would!" he jumped eagerly at the chance. 

Sakuragi's heart was thumping with joy. 'Rejoice all you people!' his innermost cried, 'for, believe it or not, Haruko is asked me, ME, to go with her to the ball. No, not Rukawa. And no, definately not that guy from the Judo Club. It's me, I say. It's me! I'm the lucky NUMBER 1!'

Could it be true? After all this time, Haruko's interest no longer ran in Rukawa? And Sakuragi had fooled himself into believing all along that she was after Rukawa, and not him. Well, of course she would like him better. He was great and mighty compared to Rukawa. HE was the tensai! HE was the man! HE was the greatest! HE, and he alone. No one else. No one but him.

But wait a minute. 

Something wasn't quite right.

"Haruko-chan," he started once again, voice deep and clear, "will you come with me to the Valentine's Ball?"

She giggled softly, brown hair trembling as she did. 

"Of course, Sakuragi-kun," she laughed. "Of course."

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Isn't it amazing how the birds can chirp and the bees can buzz and the leaves can sway with such gentleness when war is going on directly beneath them all. How ironic too, for above all these sweet sounds of mother nature were the voices of two, well, not so happy schoolgirls.

"What, Aya-chan, what, I ask, was that?"

A sophomore girl dug the heel of her shoe into the sand. She's only wanted to do what was best for Kimiko… "I just thought… well, you know, since you would eventually have to go to the ball and dance with Mitsui-sempai, I'd help you out a little…"

The redhead's arms were folded across her chest, green eyes flickering dangerously and crimson hair seemingly glowing. The expression on her face did not waver. The frown, no, the outright loathing, the deep contempt at that moment was clearly displayed for all to see. The wind helped add to the effects department.

"You **would** have to go to the ball and dance, anyway," Ayako defended, attempting to challenge the fiery green eyes.

"Before you went ahead and spewed for all the world to hear that Mitsui Hisashi was free and eligible, I **still** had a decision whether or not to go with him. But _now_ that you've so conveniently done the deed, I not only have to bear with him up on stage, having millions and kazillions of pairs of eyes looking up at me, I have to go a-prancing with him around the room. And EVERYBODY, thank you, will take special notice of us because we were up on the stage so much earlier looking like a blasted couple when we're not even friends."

"Gee, you really hate Mitsui-sempai, don't you," she stated rather pointedly.

"No no no," Kimiko hastily corrected. "Hate is such a strong word. How about despise, detest, abhor? Those three words don't even add up to 'hate' but it's as close to it as you can get. And right now," she added, cold eyes upon Ayako, "I'd say the same about you."

The brunette puffed her cheeks and let out the air inside of them. Perhaps she had gone a little too far. Maybe she should have taken Kimiko seriously when the woman declared that she didn't like Mitsui. And if she hadn't persisted on being Miss Matchmaker for the loneliest girl on earth, she wouldn't find herself getting hurt by those piercing eyes of Kimiko.

But she wanted the best for Kimiko.

And since Mitsui was generally one of the caring guys who would bother to carry your books for you, catch you when you fall, be there in the toughest times that you go through, and practically everything that one would be able to find in a stable boyfriend, Ayako thought that it wouldn't do any harm in letting Kimiko have the Best of the best. And she had examined Mitsui ever so thoroughly, trying to find something that Kimiko wouldn't like as the two (hopefully) got the chance to know each other better. Her analysis had produced a positive report about Mitsui.

Mitsui was fit and wouldn't be getting checked-in into the hospital anytime soon. He had a nice MVP award plastered on his forehead and his skills screamed for all to look. He had reputation, something which some girls may look for in these days, but she was quite sure that Kimiko didn't really care. He was generally good-looking, not on the handsome or the ugly side. He wasn't into gang fights every five minutes, although Ayako couldn't say quite the same as for the Mitsui that they'd seen earlier that year. Well, he didn't have that piercing through the ear or anything that might have captured some of Kimiko's attention, but Ayako was quite sure her best friend never meant it.

Perhaps Kimiko was too hard too please after all. That girl didn't seem to know what it meant to 'like' someone.

And in any case, if Mitsui didn't stand a candidate, it was nearly impossible for others to.

Yet… 

"Ne, I'm sorry I did that, but… really! At the rate you were going, I'd think you wouldn't go to the Valentine's Ball at all." Though she had sounded somewhat apologetic at first, the tone was long and far away from Ayako. "Maybe if you didn't take it this seriously… I mean, just dance with Mitsui, that's all. It's not like I'm asking you to get married with him or something. And that way, the other boys won't bother you for the rest of the night."

If only she could see the benefit that Mitsui would provide. Kimiko wasn't extravagantly beautiful, but boys sometimes bothered her anyway. Miyagi had been one. It was real funny then, because Kimiko could see right through him then and had laughed him in the face, informing him that Ayako was her best friend and she knew him better. She had also left Miyagi with a fair warning that her Aya-chan only deserved the best. And nothing less.

Wasn't that what Ayako was trying to do for her now?

Kimiko brushed aside what the basketball team manageress had just said. "That issue aside, Aya-chan. There's nothing I can do about it now," she huffed. "Besides, I just remembered something." There was something about the way that those emerald eyes glinted that made Ayako fidget uncomfortably.

"W-what?" was her stammered reaction.

Kimiko lifted one hand from their crossed position and placed it on her chin, fingers barely covering the suppressed grin forming on her lips. "We still have a deal… and since I'm going to have to get to know Mitsui better…"

Ayako's eyes slammed wide open only to see Kimiko's head bob once, curtly. Her best friends face was contorted with a grin that she would describe as the most nefarious one yet. With that You-Got-It look on her face, Kimiko's voice came out in a slow speech, informing Ayako of the counterbalance yet to work.

Ayako had to be Miyagi's dance partner on Valentine's Day.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Mitsui felt as though he'd never been in the principal's office before.

He was observant of the books shelved up and the multitudes of files. The slight mess on the principal's desk astonished him; Matsushita was quite well known for his standard in neatness. Amidst the scattered paper, he caught a glimpse of the metal nameplate that read: Principal Matsushita.

The balding man looked up at him over the top of his glasses.

"Mitsui-san," he said, sitting up and putting his pen away, "come, take a seat."

The desk chair was more comfortable than when he had last visited the principal's office. The sleek black leather appealed to Mitsui and he found the chair slightly lumpier than its looks had promised. In an attempt to rid himself of the nervousness creeping up his spine, he leaned back into the softness of the chair.

"It's been a long time since I saw you, eh?" the old man chuckled, paperwork aside.

Mitsui nodded dumbly, risking a small smile back at the man. Indeed, the last time he was down in the office, it was because of his smoking in the toilets in school. And then there was the time when he got into a gang fight. Not forgetting sending Miyagi into a hospital ward somewhere near his own. Oh yes, and he had also been heavily reprimanded for motorbike racing on the highway.

He frowned at the remembrance of the wreck he used to be. 

Fighting, smoking, racing – meaningless things he soon got out off once he went back into the basketball team. But oh, smoking was the worst to break. Sometimes, he would sneak a smoke after school hours and in the park. If it hadn't been for Akagi and Kogure and even Miyagi being there for him, Mitsui was quite sure he would be signed up in the hospital for lung cancer in a couple of years.

He had made a promise to the very same man right here in this office that he'd break his habits. His mother too – she'd suffered the worst shock when she learnt of his behaviour. It was all and well that his father never knew. Mitsui wouldn't even speculate the kind of punishment that would rain down on him.

"You know why you're here," Matsushita continued. "And it isn't because of bad attitude, I hope."

At that, the three-pointer star grinned. "Aa, Matsushita-sensei."

He was being freed of his Dance Committee duties and being brought under another department that wouldn't humiliate him as much. Being an emcee appealed to Mitsui very much, if you asked him. Not only would he be cleared of the name "dancer-boy", he wouldn't have to face those scary girls every lesson Kogure decided to hold.

Matsushita sat drew his chair in a little such that he could rest his forearms on the desk, fingers interlaced. "The job of an emcee is very simple. The only difficult part is memorising the entire agenda for that day and being enthusiastic and excitable – both of which I am quite sure you are capable of. And there are its bonuses too (that is, only if you're interested). You will working with one of the female students."

Mitsui groaned. Not one of *them*, he hoped. 

Chuckles came from the principal's direction. "She'll be stepping in shortly, though I'm afraid there isn't a need to formally introduce you two. She's a year younger than you, and from what I heard, you two know each other."

The Year 3 boy's eyes widened.

He couldn't mean…

"Ah," Matsushita's countenance brightened as the door clicked open and footsteps padded in, "here she is."

With much anticipation built up in him, Mitsui turned the chair by a fraction and leaned his head to peer over the side of it.

Red hair. Green eyes.

Mitsui Hisashi groaned and leaned back into the chair.

Great. Just great.

@,'—,'--,'--,'-

Blah. Took me real long, this chapter did. I started it before Christmas and only finished it now. Half a month late, kinda.

School work's taking its toil on me so gomen if I take too long to post it up. I'm a student, yannoe. And my current educational level requires me not to have a life for quite some time…eeps…

Hope you guys enjoyed Ayako and Kimiko's 'friendship'. Wonder if any of you identify with that…

I am going to whip up some mashed potatoes and get ready to wake up at 5.15am tomorrow and be prepared to slave the day away. Again.

And no, I don't know all too much about how Green Tea ice cream tastes, but one sip of green tea makes me wanna puke.

  
©Copyrighted by JadOo Enterprises 2003 (finally, the year has changed. I just realised that this fic's been on since 2001…)


	14. Valentine's Special Part III

**Melting Ice  
**_Valentine's Special Part III  
 But Let's Face It, Life Can Be Kind…_

Disclaimer: I just told you to "spare me from writing any disclaimers" right? SlamDunk has never (sadly) belonged to me… which ultimately means Rukawa isn't mine… *sniff* *sniff* WAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'M SO HAPPY! My friend lent me the Luna Sea album with the best selections…though I'll say that some of the tracks make my head throb. Haaa… TriggerHappy Maniac has promised to update her fic (for any of you who read Weiß Kreuz). 

Hahaha…I think I won't be adding too many Sakuragi/Haruko parts in here. Mostly Ru-boy and Yuki-chan.

Cheers! "Always look on the bright side of life. Dodo, dodododododo~"

^________________________________________________^ (the flower thing was really getting to me. In case you don't see it, it's a really W   I   D   E grin. ^.^)

I can see what's happenin' (What?)  
And they don't have a clue (Who?)  
They'll fall in love and here's the bottom line…  
Our trio's down to two (Oh…)  
The sweet caress of twilight  
There's magic everywhere  
And with all this romantic atmosphere  
DISASTER'S IN THE AIR!  
_- Lion King___

101 Steps to Being the Perfect Gentleman (AKA: A Charmer With the Ladies):

¤ Always maintain a soft tone.

¤ Remember, ladies first. Not second or third. FIRST… except when trouble strikes, of course…

¤ Hold the door open for the lady.

¤ Assist the lady whenever she needs help.

¤ On public transport, let the lady have your seat instead. 

¤ If you are to escort a lady, crook your arm for her to hold on to.

¤Oh, and don't forget. They like roses. @,'--,'---

¤ Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera… 

He wrung his nose at the printed words on the manual.

Was this what 'Jiisan had meant when he had said, "Take care of the ladies"?

He frowned.

This just seemed like a whole bunch of rubbish.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

"So basically, all you two have to do right now is come up with a draft as to how the programme would run; where, when and what would be going on as well as who to look for. After that, you take a break until a week before the Valentine's Ball. Any questions?"

Mitsui stole a glance to his right. 

Kimiko's arms were folded and her legs crossed. She leant back into the chair, but not far enough to make her look sloppy.

"Mitsui-san?"

He snapped his attention back to the old man. "Er… not at all, Sensei."

"Good.  Maehara-san?" Matsushita threw her a look that dared her to say something wrong.

"Just one," she said evenly, ignoring the sudden behaviour of their principal. "When is the draft due?"

Matsushita felt somewhat relieved. "Two weeks from today. Then we'll have the final draft and programme schedule another two weeks from that."

Inwardly, Kimiko scowled, but she did not let it show on her face lest the principal decided that she was nothing more than a childish student. Two weeks was too short for her alone to finish up the whole project. That meant that she had to _work_ with Mitsui Hisashi – not the best idea as to how she would spend her freedom. And she had to work with him for one month, a week and an evening.

"No further questions, Sensei."

The principal nodded his balding head. "One more thing before you leave then: report to Ayako-san for your outfits. Emcees have the privilege of taking on a different look from the rest of the student body."

Both Kimiko and Mitsui stood and bowed, departing from the cool office shortly.

It was outside where things got slightly more complicated.

"So…" Mitsui's hands were stuck in his pocket. He could feel the thumping of his heart against his ribcage. Somehow, no matter how hard he tried, he still found it impossible to not like Kimiko. For that one long hour, he felt his crush coming back, slowly but surely. It made him uncertain and afraid at how she would take all this. Although, right now, distaste was clearly written on her face. "When do you want to start this whole draft thing?"

He tried to sound as normal as possible, but found it funny. It seemed unfathomable as to how Miyagi could be at such ease with Ayako or how Rukawa seemed to be quite at home with that girl. Perhaps he just had to get used to this thingy…

"Soon. So that it can end ASAP too." Ugh, as cold as ice.

Her steps came in strides as she made her way to Ayako's headquarters. Mitsui caught pace with her easily. His long legs giving him the boost he needed.

He should have guessed. Her first reaction was to go tell her best friend.

Mitsui fell silent, observing Kimiko on their short trip to the dressmaking studio.

Miyagi was right; there was more to Kimiko than what he knew.

And Mitsui wanted to find out what.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

LadiesfirstLadiesfirstLadiesfirst… the words hummed in Rukawa's mind as he went about daily activities with Yukiko.

"Finds ways to improve yourself!" his father had declared. "Be a gentleman, and start with THIS!" Kyoshiro had promptly slammed a large book (101 Steps to Being the Perfect Gentleman) in front of a bored Rukawa. Although seemingly uninterested, Kaede flipped opened the book once his father was away in the kitchen.

It was a curious book which strange instructions that Rukawa could never figure. Nevertheless, as much as he hated to admit it, he was going to try some of the stunts. One, so that his father would stop badgering him about the ball, and two, so that maybe he could pop the question with more ease or perhaps put Yukiko in a spot where she couldn't refuse.

*What* was that…?

Rukawa pushed away all evil and unknown thoughts, keeping a step behind Yukiko, always.

After all, this was what 'Ladies First' meant, right?

They were headed towards the temporary Dressmaking Studio. It was actually just one of the equipment rooms, cleared out so that the Clothes Committee could have some working space.

Try as he might, Rukawa never really understood the purpose of all this… unnecessary social events.

HoldthedooropenHoldthedooropenHoldthedooropen a sudden change of commands overcame him as the sliding door of the studio made itself evident. Briskly, Rukawa took a stride and slid the door open even before Yukiko could lift her hands to do the job. Slightly disturbed by his change of behaviour, Yukiko narrowed her brows, yet bowed nonetheless and thanked him, stepping hurriedly lest he should see the expression on her face. Bewilderment – she wondered how Rukawa would respond to that.

Rukawa was just about to close the door when he caught that girl coming their way. Kimiko, he believed, was her name.

Caught between a moment of slamming the door shut and leaving it open for the coming lady, Rukawa's hand tightened on the sliding door. Wait, if Kimiko was a lady, that ultimately meant…

The redhead passed through the sliding door, saying a brief thank you to Rukawa as she did so. Without another thought, the super rookie slid the door close, ready to report to Ayako for the day.

Mitsui was just about to thank Rukawa as well when the door narrowly missed his nose.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

"Hold still."

"I would if that pervert wouldn't look at me so. It's enough to make me want to dig his eyes out."

"I tell you, he's not that kind of person."

"Well then, I'm telling you, maybe you don't know him all that well after all. Men hide the darkest secrets from women, you know." The cynicism did not go unnoticed at all by Ayako. "I can't believe that I **actually have to go through all this nonsense with him. Not to mention that it was your evil doing."**

Ayako smiled lightly. "If you ask me, you don't seem to mind my evilness at all."

Kimiko huffed, causing the tape around her waist to lose its reading momentarily. "You are my friend, Aya-chan. You would never harm me. He, on the other hand, is an alien that should be sent right back to Martian world with all the other weirdos and sickos that contaminate the earth."

"Just stay still for a while longer and then you can go beat him up, okay?"

"Deal."

Kimiko remained still, but not before throwing one last nasty look in Mitsui's direction. The blue-hair senior blinked. Was this hate being radiated at him? He looked around to find another person that Kimiko could have been sending a death-glare at, but found none.

Ayako scribbled down the last of her friend's information and put aside the tools she had just used. She watched amusedly as Kimiko strode to where Mitsui was innocently seated and whacked him, giving him a fair warning to "keep his roaming eyes off the female population". Kimiko later reasoned that Ayako said she could do it.

Ayako chuckled, humoured by her best friend's actions. She never thought that Kimiko would behave this way at all. In fact, it seemed as though the girl really wanted to hit him or something. Exactly why was a riddle to Ayako. Kimiko usually remained quite 'noble' when it came to these whom she despised. She disliked mixing around with them.

But Ayako had speculated something like this happening much earlier.

Watching the two made life so funny. And watching how Kimiko insisted that she loathed Mitsui and went all out against him was even more interesting. Perhaps Kimiko was blind to such a thing. The girl was blissfully unaware of the feelings she had. Ayako had some inkling of it when Kimiko started this indignation. Yet, at that time, it seemed rather reasonable, considering that the girl had been attentive of the conduct Mitsui once held. 

Ayako settled back into her chair, letting her eyes travel across the room to where Yukiko and Rukawa were doing their work. Rukawa fumbled with the needle, doing the basic work; Yukiko had a sewing machine in front of her, working away at the dresses. Ayako never really did get the relationship between the two. It was quite queer, if you asked her.

A giggle was held back as Rukawa decided that he had had enough of this sewing business. The super rookie headed for the door, about to buy some drinks from the dispenser, but not before helping his lookalike untangle the cloth that receded to the floor.

Rukawa was strange like that – his emotions hidden, thoughts unspoken. But somehow, people accepted him rather easily. He was quiet, did not speak back or give his own opinions – many would consider him a good listener. Ayako knew better; Rukawa would be sleeping by the time you are done with your storytelling.

The four seemed happy like that. Carefree in their own way.

She wondered… had she ever the chance…?

The basketball team manageress swung one leg over the other and started on her paperwork. These musings were not important. A bigger, more important occasion was coming up and the school was counting on her to make it work. Her hands flew briefly to her head in an attempt to adjust her cap, but landed on brown curls when she realised that she wasn't in basketball practice. She wasn't filling in the forms for the team.

She knew why she had done it unconsciously.

Lying on the table, in front of her, was the open file of the sophomores' records. And the page was open at the one which read: Miyagi Ryota.

Ryota. She called him that. Easily. Naturally. It popped out of her mouth whenever she found the need to call his name. It just reflected a sense of knowing between them. They were friends, Ayako would like to think, and nothing more than that.

Ryota. It was strange how he was more like "Miyagi" now. Distant and unknown. Quiet and detached. Almost as if she had known him for only a few days, or hours maybe.

He avoided her now. She wished he had done so earlier when she wanted him away. As much as she refused to admit, his withdrawal made her uneasy. It made her feel as though something was missing. Ayako grip her pen tightly and moved to flip the page, forcing a grim look on her face.

"Thinking about a certain Point Guard?"

Ayako did not bother to look up at who was speaking. The voice itself was all too familiar to her ears. She could never mistake it for someone else's.

"Finally done with Mitsui?" She exhaled, putting down her pen. Kimiko shadowed her with a cheeky gleam in her green eyes. Somehow, Ayako did not get a good feeling about her best friend doing that.

"Why so cold, Aya-chan? It was just an innocent question." Ayako moved to close the file, but her best friend's hand shut the covers of the file instead. "I have some interesting news for you," her tone was no long mischievous. "Let's call it the fruit of speaking to Mitsui Hisashi."

Ayako swung her chair to get a better look at Kimiko. Her friend wasn't looking at her, but instead letting her eyes sweep briefly over the room. "It wouldn't be too good to talk here," Kimiko muttered under her breath just loud enough for Ayako to hear. The usually smooth brow of Kimiko creased slightly. Ayako got her point.

Then she remembered something amusing. With a wry smile she gave a suggestion. 

"The broom closet?"

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

He fingered the silken red petals, smelling the sweet scent as he did so.

He had just stopped by his locker before heading back. He had been keeping the rose in his locker since morning, slightly embarrassed that he should present it to her so soon. It would be awkward for him to do something like this out of the blue. He knew that girls liked surprises, and she was no different. But still… even holding the flower made him uncomfortable.

The last time he had presented flowers to her, it just seemed simply out of convenience because he had bought a little more than intended. She had not shown extreme signs of delight like squealing or anything. Just a smile of appreciation and a word of thanks.

"Roses are red" – whoever said that had certainly been misinformed. He had spent over an hour at the florist's, staring wide-eyed at all the assorted rose colours and trying to make a final decision. The cream-coloured one would have been nice. It was pure and sweet. The blue ones were like her eyes. Well, more like his eyes, actually. Orange looked somewhat tangy and out of place. Also, orange was not her colour. The pink roses would have made any other girl shriek in joy, but not her. She would think it distasteful. He had ruled it out; it did not suit her anyhow.

But yet… the red seemed overdone. It was too fiery, too passionate. Enticing, yes. Nevertheless, the thought of giving it to her did not feel right…

"Rukawa-kun~"

Rukawa was snapped out of his musings by a coy chortle. Blinking, he turned to see who had just called his name.

"Rukawa-kun…remember me? Mara?"

Oh, that girl. Rukawa had a vague memory of seeing her around somewhere… 

"So, are you bringing anyone to the ball…?" she fluttered her eyelids coquettishly. "You know… the **Valentines** Ball."

Rukawa made no move to answer her question. He was, instead, trying to think of the best way out of this situation whilst keeping to the oath of being a gentleman. 

Mara misinterpreted his stoniness for him being overwhelmed and dumb-struck by her beauty. This made her bold in her advance. "Well, Rukawa-kun, if you need a date for Valentine's, you could always ask me. Just to let you know though, I have other boys pining after me and… uh!" She faked a fall, thinking that Rukawa would catch her, of which he did not. Thus Mara clung onto him.

"Thank you," Mara breathed as flirtatiously as she could. 

Rukawa said nothing, but released her claws on his school uniform.

"Oh, Rukawa-kun, you are so sweet~" daring, Mara lifted a hand to stroke the boy's face. Rukawa dodged the unfamiliar hands just in time, and caught it with two fingers.

"Mara-san," he tried to be as polite as possible, even if this Mara did not come under the category of 'Ladies', "I have someone waiting for me."

She shrieked. "What!?"

Rukawa maintained his calmness. "There are others waiting for you too," he said, other hand still fingering the rose. The red rose did not seem like a gift for her. No, red was too strong a colour. She was neither feisty nor classy. Red roses were not suited for her…

In a moment, Rukawa placed the single stalk of rose in Mara's hand. The girl took the rose, dumbfounded by his present. Rukawa on the other hand took the drinks he had obtained from the dispenser and shut his locker door. He had pretty much dealt with this girl and there was nothing more to do. It was a waste of the rose though, he had to admit. 

"I…I…"the girl began. "Thank you."

His eyes widened with surprise. "You like it?"

"Why, yes. Of course…"

Rukawa blinked, then gave a small bow to say 'your welcome', and went ahead on his way.

He did not think that the girl would like it so much. After all, it was just a flower. But seeing the girl so pleased with the rose… he wondered if Yukiko would enjoy roses too.

He left Mara behind to boast over the rose that the super rookie had given her.

Yukiko was, after all, waiting for him to get the drinks.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Her steps were shaky as they made their way to the school's front porch.

Whether to be angry or upset, she had no idea. Her expression was unreadable, strange in its manner of trying to choose which feeling best suited the moment.

A seemingly strong pair of arms supported her, guiding her to the correct way. Ayako was thankful for that, that Kimiko was always there for her even at such a time. Even if she was not sure whether or not to blame her best friend for her current state.

Kimiko remained remotely silent, carefully leading Ayako about the school premises, making sure not to let her friend trip. Obviously the news had been a stunner to Ayako.

As soon as they reached the front porch, Ayako released Kimiko's hold on her and turned around. She took in a deep breath. "Do I look okay?" she asked, self-conscious that he would change his mind.

"Of course you do." Green eyes smiled back at her, tucking loose strands of brunette hair behind her ear.

"You sure everything you've told me is true?" Her tone held something that warned the redhead to be careful with words.

Kimiko shrugged casually. "It's all in Mitsui Hisashi's words."

Ayako managed a small smile. "You even know his full name," she teased. Kimiko folded her arms in mock indignation.

She peered over to the gate where a certain bread-head was. Ayako bit her lip as she scrutinized the other girl with him. Ayako knew that girl. That girl liked Miyagi, it had appeared. Whoever would ever be insane to fall for Miyagi Ryota?

She let the scene feed her eyes. Miyagi's near reluctance and the girl's obvious starry-eyes. Until Kimiko gave her a nudge and a harsh whisper: "What're you waiting for?"

"But…what if he'd rather go with her? I mean…what if he's changed his mind already?" 

Kimiko conked her hard on the head. "Whaddya mean 'what if'! The baka's been pining over you since Year 1 for goodness sake. Don't be stupid, girl!"

And so, with a bump on her head and hurried footsteps, she dashed to the scene, fearing that Miyagi's lips would move too fast and the harsh sound of reality would make itself heard.

"I…I…"Miyagi started, stammering. 

"What is it, Ryota-san?" He felt somewhat guilty whenever he heard her voice replying. He knew that this person standing in front of him expressed extreme fondness over weeks since the notice had gone up about the Valentine's Ball. Yet he felt guilty nonetheless.

He was not doing this girl a favour.

He knew. He knew that he would end up hurting both this innocent girl and himself. He knew that this act was stupid, plain stupid. He knew that the words that were going to escape his mouth sooner or later would not be sincere. He knew that this girl would believe him. And he knew he was lying.

He was lying to her.

He was lying to himself.

"Ermmm…" somehow, saying this was so much more uncomfortable than when he was after Ayako. He swallowed hard. "Would you…ermm… g, go with…me… to… the…the…the…"

"Yes." He nearly died when she said that.

Realisation dawned upon Miyagi. He wanted her to say 'no'. He had wanted her to refuse him so that he would not have to go, feeling awkward and dancing with an unknown girl in front of Ayako's eyes. He'd rather go with his Aya-chan.

"What?" The word escaped his lips before he could even stop them. Miyagi felt bad at having done that.

"I said yes, Ryota… sorry I'm late…"

Late? _Late?__ In what way was she late?_

Waitaminute.

What was that she called him? Ryota? With no suffixes whatsoever?

And…was the tone different? No. Not the tone. The voice, rather. The whole sound of it was different yet strangely familiar. It sounded so much like…

"…A…Aya…chan…?" the syllables popped out of his mouth, natural yet foreign. His eyes grew wide, the ends of his mouth drew a distance. "AYA-CHAN!!!"

A whack on his head by the ever so prominent paper fan prevent him from hugging her.

"I only said I was going to the dance with you."

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

The gentle pitter-patter of rain preceded her footsteps as Yukiko stepped out of the school gates.

She was glad to be released, finally, from that cage of society, of prejudice. It seemed that more had been added to her hate club. She tried remaining nonchalant when girls spoke of her in such a demoralizing way. Her indifferent front was beginning to wear out.

She wondered for a moment how Rukawa did it. It was challenging for her, not to mention tiring.

Something furry rubbed against her leg. Yukiko looked down on instinct to find a young black kitten crawling about; seeking shelter from the element it hated most. Smiling, she bent down to pick it up.

"Hey, what's your name?" She snuggled the kitten in the cup of her palm, scratching it behind the ears.

The kitten purred, sliding its face against her palm, looking somewhat serene. Yukiko ran a finger over the young cat's forehead, just in time to prevent a drop of rain from attacking the kitten.

"Oh dear," were the two syllables that escaped her lips as she hung her head further out and hunched over to protect the kitten from the onslaught of the drizzle. She brought the black bundle closer to her body to shelter it.

That was how Rukawa found her outside the school gate, huddled as though she were cold. It puzzled him why she would do that. A drop of rain touched his nose. Scratching his head in his ever-so-Rukawa manner, he racked his brains for anything that the book might have said to do in such a situation.

He found none.

As he approached Yukiko, he heard her voice in a strange mumble, as though she were talking to something, someone. Her abnormal behaviour made him blink. His concern was raised when he saw her huddled ever more so. Suddenly, the event of earlier times flew to his mind and he felt a distinct twinge of fear.

"You know," she began, stroking the silken back of the kitten, "you really remind me of…" Yukiko stopped short. There was an added weight of a black school-jacket on her shoulders. It was still warm from being worn. She turned her head slightly, and smiled at who it was. "Hey," she said, and then, "Arigato."

He grunted in return, laying a curious gaze on the black being with green eyes. Strangely, it reminded him of his father. Rukawa snorted.

The kitten stared at him, jade eyes affixed on his sapphire orbs. Threatened by his presence, the kitten began to claw at Yukiko, who was obliged to place it back on the pavement. The cat's eyes remained wary of Rukawa as it circled him, scrutinizing him. Rukawa kept his stance still.

With one last glare at this boy, the kitten returned to Yukiko, rubbed its head against her leg and went away.

Rukawa watched, clueless, as the kitten made its departure. His eyes flicked back to the laughing form of Yukiko. His jacket trembled with her shoulders, her ponytail swayed with glee. Her aquamarine eyes were closed by a fraction.

When she had finally sobered, Yukiko cocked her head to the side and commented lightly: "I think he doesn't like you."

"He?" His expression grew puzzled.

"Bio," she replied vaguely.

He nodded in mute response, careful not to place a queer expression on her face. He had certainly not expected her to observe the anatomy of the kitten.

Yukiko picked up her abandoned portfolio. Announcing, "I'm going home", she turned on a heel, waiting for Rukawa's answer.

He shoved his hands into his pocket and strode to where she stood, waiting.

It was queer like that. Each knew what the other meant. She did not need to ask if he would come, he was bound to. And Rukawa certainly needed no hint to know that something was on her mind. The way she began humming an unknown tune ad added forced bounce to her step was more than enough.

The drizzle had stopped.

"Something's on your mind…" his mouth spoke of its own accord, voicing what his heart could feel.

"Hai." Her forced cheerfulness stung him as he walked alongside her. 

An awkward silence fell.

Yukiko completely ignorant of his comment; Rukawa finding that it was not his place to probe. He figured that she would tell him if she needed to.

She looked somewhat silly, wearing his jacket in that lopsided manner and taking uneven paces. He doubted that she was wary of where she was going. Yukiko had always had this tendency to forget her initial destination.

Rukawa's eyes jolted open when he noticed a sinister looking rock in her path. She was not watching where she was going, he knew. Before anything could be done to prevent a serious accident, the rock had done its deed.

An immediate step sent Rukawa her way.

Yukiko was startled by the rock in her path and moved her leg to regain balance. But something else snatched her attention.

A force on her abdomen pulled her back. She completely lost her centre of gravity, until she hit a sturdy form.

It felt… new like this. Never had he thought they would end up like that.

Perhaps he had used too much strength. For a moment there, Rukawa had to adjust his footing to prevent a tumble.

Yukiko was forgiving. She knew that he had probably yet to snap out of his basketball psychology. Humans did not exactly resemble basketballs.

Rukawa relaxed the open palm on her abdomen. He retracted it, jerking it away in a second. Her back was still against his front. Rukawa could not help but notice the strange yet comfortable warmth.

"Sumen," he apologized when she had finally found the strength to propel away from him.

"It's okay," she began, attempting to take a step back from the shock, away from him. She could feel a blush teasing her, climbing up her neck. The very same rock threatened a fall. But it sure did promise a relapse.

Once again, they found themselves in the same situation.

Rukawa got it right this time.

Yukiko found herself in an upright manner with a pair of arms encircling her form; one over the back of her shoulders, the other lower down at her waist. Tight, they allowed no movement yet were not enough to hurt her in their grip.

Yukiko could hear a faint beating of his heart, faced pressed up against his chest. His taut muscles seemed more evident than usual. She could feel his lungs expand and contract in his even breathing.

She breathed hard and bit on her lip.

Yukiko was quite aware of the hot sensation creeping up her face. She resolved to say nothing.

Rukawa held her absently.

He had never noticed how small her frame was before. He was quite sure that he could rest his chin on her head without discomfort. Her hair smelt like lemon-honey. The same warmth that had been apparent earlier returned to taunt him.

Rukawa released her when she started to fidget.

"Sumen," he said for the second time.

Yukiko's back was toward him. She was determined not to let him see how red her face had become.

Obviously unfazed, Rukawa removed his school-jacket from her shoulders. He supposed that might be the reason why emanated heat. "Daijoubu?" he asked, worried that he might have unknowingly caused some distress. For some reason or another she remained insistent on her stance, facing the other direction.

When she finally whipped around, Yukiko avoided all possible eye contact with Rukawa. "Aa, daijoubu."

Rukawa glanced curiously at her. Yukiko looked away. The heat was teasing her face once again.

"Doushta?" he queried, concerned. She was acting funny.

"Nothing," she replied, somewhat impatient this time. Why couldn't he just ignore her for one moment?

He shrugged, clueless. His bicycle was against a nearby tree. Rukawa strode over to get it.

Then he realised a problem.

How on earth was he going to let Yukiko have his seat instead?

He cursed the stupid manual for the crap it cooked up.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

If anything, organising an event was such a bore.

"Maybe we could set the dance before the dinner, or perhaps after would make more sense…appetizers sound better than dinner, somehow…"

She yawned and threw back her arms, ignorance of the voice that buzzed at her ear. She hated all this fuss this fuss, this tediousness. Who came up with this silly idea anyway? And how did she dragged into the picture? Oh yes. How could she forget? It was her best friend's pleasure to lend her a hand in emotional issues.

Bleah. What reason did Ayako have to barge into her love life anyway? 

"Kimiko?"

She snapped out of her musings and glanced at the boy who was her supposed love partner. Kimiko fought the urge to snort.

She sat there, saying nothing for a minute and rummaging her mind for whatever information he had just given her. "Appetisers," she finally said, and then "before, during and after," as an afterthought. She hoped it would make him shut up.

Mitsui smiled. "That's settled then."

"Are we done yet?" she asked through a yawn. She remained polite in her speech. After all, this boy had helped Ayako get on with Miyagi.

Mitsui ran through the stack of paper on the table. He swiped a hand through his blue hair once every few sheets, nervously. Never in his life had he shown such a responsible side. It was unnerving for him.

"Welcome address." It came out as a suppressed sigh.

Kimiko's shock of red hair jumped. "Yeowch," she said, "you do it."

Riiiiiiiight. He had been doing most of the work already.

"Perhaps you should give it a go," he reasoned, trying to persuade her in a sweet tone. "Besides, your speech is more fluent more than mine. And most of the students know you."

Kimiko rolled her eyes. As though the student body did not recognize him. He was probably more than her. "Uh uh. Don't like the nasty job."

"Maybe you don't….but my report's done," he emphasized with the straightening of papers a cocked an eyebrow. "How about you?"

Kimiko frowned at his audacity to challenge her in such a manner. She had thought he would give her some slack for the bit of answers she threw back at him. Stifling curse, she muttered a faint "yeah".

Mitsui threw her a boyish grin and then a paper and a pen.

Ooh…how she hated him…

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

The TV was loud in its racket – a mix of cheers and shouts and commentating and background music, courtesy of the radio.

Kaede gave his father one look, and then switched the television set off.

Kyoshiro shrugged in response. He had intended to get off the telly sooner or later. Kaede was just a catalyst. Somehow, Kaede had obtained the serious side of Seiichiro. It was just about enough to let the man have suspicions about Megumi. Hmmm…

Kaede frowned disapprovingly. Why, again, was the black-hair, green-eyed man living in his house?

As though reading his son's mind, Kyoshiro grinned and replied: "You were the one who told me not to "disturb Yuki-chan~" He dragged the nickname, purposefully flashing Kaede a Cheshire cat smile.

Kaede kept silent, ignoring the man whom he resembled so much.

He did not mind Kyoshiro that much, Kaede could be sure of that. His father not only bore semblance to his uncle in appearance, certain qualities that Kyoshiro had matched that of Seiichiro. And as much as Kaede hated to admit it, his father **did hold a respectable front, save his blood-stained past.**

But Kaded supposed that his father's goofiness and carefree spirit was a break from that of his strict uncle. Often, as a boy, Kaede felt intimidated by his uncle's stern sense of responsibility. As a playful child, Kaede was soon brought up to become a silent child, found in remorse over a tiny mistake. Found in punishment, actually. If his father had been around, Kaede was quite sure that the outcome would be much more different. Such a relaxed father would have made life easier. Such a worry-free father would…

Kaede stopped himself there. 

What's past was past, he decided long ago. There was nothing he could do now anyways. He could not bring his mother and sister back to life. He could not prevent his uncle from being hunted down at well. And he could not erase the fact that his own biological father had made blood rain just for his cause.

The boy threw his keys onto the counter and sneaked a glance at his father. The television was on again, soccer match raving in the screen. He sighed, despaired at the grown man. Something else caught his attention.

An envelope peeked out from the stack of fresh mail. Kaede picked it up and fingered it gingerly.

Fast to catch a glimpse, Kyoshiro smiled knowingly at his son. Lowering the volume of the telly set, he phrased his question with utmost care. "You have yet to ask her out?" His smirk was teasing. Kyoshiro found the strange behaviour of his son entertaining.

Annoyed, Kaede shot back. "Why? Have you got someone to go out with?"

"Nope." Kyoshiro's confident grin was stubborn on his face, refusing to vanish. "There's only one woman for me, and that's you mother." He paused, then added a tentative "but I suppose Yukiko-san is worth some considering" as an afterthought.

Kaede's head jerked sharply in his direction, and Kyoshiro raised his arms in surrender. "Just kidding," he meeped. "But," he persisted on, "aren't you going to, well, ask her to the ball at all?"

His only response was Kaede tracing a finger along the smooth surface of the thin card. Kyoshiro frowned at this cowardly display by his son. This was important, for goodness sake. This ultimately determined important things for his bashful, shy, whatever-the-word son. Things like relationships and building bonds and getting to know others and learning how to trust. Yes, learning the true meaning of trust. And of course, the true meaning of companionship. Kyoshiro was quite sure his did not count as Kaede's companion. He could barely qualify.

He resorted to say what he had not wanted to say.

"Go ask her, son. Don't make the same mistake that your 'Jiisan made. Don't let her slip past you and then regret it later on." __

_You remember this, boy, when you meeta real lady, grab the chance. Dun lettit pass by like I did. Dun waste a crap of a second. Dun be chicken._

Kaede blinked and stared at him, brows knitted, perturbed.

Kyoshiro made a faint clucking sound against his palate before giving Kaede a thumbs up. "Go get hey, boy."

The boy nodded in mute response and grabbed his keys. Kaede was out of the house in no time, leaving the gate open in his hurry.

Kyoshiro smiled and yelled after his son to not to be back late. He cast his eyes upon the pictures that stood proudly on the mantelpiece. He stuck out his tongue at a certain older brother with the same slick, jet-black hair and cat-green eyes.

"Too bad, Seii-nii. My son's just like me."

Rukawa Seiichiro was grinning right back at him.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Yukiko stared at her mother, puzzled.

"Mom," she asked, cocking her head to the side, "what are you doing?"

Kikuno looked up at her. There was a thoughtful pause, before she finally decided on her reply. "Things…"

"Things…?" Yukiko repeated, not comprehending as she surveyed the area about here. There was a mass of cards and small gifts on the floor, each with a different return address, but one thing was common amongst the whole lot of them. They were all directed to the Watanabe household.

Kikuno smiled, shaking her head. "I never thought…they sure are persistent…" Her hand sifted through the postcards and the tiny trinkets that had come in the mail. Some parcels had been opened; she had taken a look. This was insane. "Yukiko," she called, finally making up her mind.

"Hmm?"

The older woman stood. "Help me burn them."

Wide aquamarine eyes widened. "Ara? Doushite?"

Not heeding her daughter's apparent surprise, she went on ahead to pick up the paper products that lay scattered on the floor, bringing them out to the back porch after which. Yukiko followed her mother, picking up the remaining items, yet her clueless expression never left her face.

Kikuno settled cards and envelopes onto a porcelain dish. It was not long before a set of matches made its appearance. And soon, fire.

The parcels lay forlornly in the corner.

"You know," she began wearily, adding a couple more cards to the burning stack, "these cards were sent to me for Valentine's Day."

"From 'tousan?" was the younger girls first thought. Her hopeful tone made Kikuno wince. 

The mother shook her head. "I'm still quite eligible, Yuki-chan."

The flame burned bright, devouring the cards of unrequited affection. It dimmed from the choking of ashes. A familiar hand threw more paper in.

"I came here this month to avoid all this…all this hassle…" Kikuno watched the blaze in the dish, adding to the carbon pile once every few minutes. "Actually, I don't know why this was the first place that came to mind. I mean, I knew that Kenji would like to stay over for a bit and all, and Shiro won't really mind. But…it just popped into my head when I was seeking solace…" She closed her eyes. The faint charred smell tickled her nose.

Yukiko remained remotely silent. Her eyes were focused intently on the al-consuming flame.

Solace.

She wondered, what was it about all these gifts that made her mother want to seek 'solace'? Although she herself would have been embarrassed by this great amount of presents, Yukiko thought that it would be flattering for a middle-aged person.

Solace. What a strange word to use.

To run away. To seek peace, shelter from the world. www.dictionary.com defined it as "A source of comfort or consolation." [A/N: hahaha. hope you don't mind the spoof ^.^]

But what in this house was able to give her mother that sense of ease. That tranquillity that all Man sought after?

Kenji? No, her brother was with her mom half the time. And, dare she say it, but Yukiko was quite sure that Kenji was half of her mother's troubles; what with all his strange antics. He was easily anyone's nightmare.

Was it her – Yukiko? She doubted it. Yukiko knew that she fell under the same category as her brother: the tiny monsters that just annoy the hell out of you and bring more worries than necessary. Yukiko remembered the many a time when her mother shed tears for her, scolded her and got stressed up because of the growing girl.

So that left…

"Otousan."

The word was out of her mouth before Yukiko knew it.

Kikuno turned, questioningly.

Yukiko swallowed cautiously. "He's your solace…isn't he…?"

A brief silence fell.

"…Perhaps…" was all that Kikuno could reply at the moment; a voice in the night disturbed their conversation.

"Anou…" Yukiko recognised the voice instantly. She stood, prepared to go and meet the owner of that voice, then stopped in mid-step. She had almost forgotten.

Her mother had yet to meet him.

_¤¤L¤O¤V¤E¤¤_

Rukawa stuck his hands even further into his pockets.

This was stupid.

Here he was outside the Watanabe residence in the middle of the night doing nothing but moping around. He wouldn't be surprised if people mistook him for a stalker and the police came by to lock him up for a day or so.

For all he knew, Yukiko might have already fallen asleep.

For all he knew, Fujima Kenji was probably grinning up there in the window with his sickeningly annoying smile.

For all he knew, Rukawa was probably at the wrong residence.

What would he say if this seventy-year-old lonely granny came up to the doorstep and asked him to join her in conversation because she, well, was lonely? What would he do if this was the house of one of his ecstatic fangirls? What would he do if this house actually belonged to the Kanagawa mafia?

This was getting way too weird. All under the influence of his father, Rukawa believed.

He opted to walk back home when no one had answered after what seemed like five minutes.

What was he thinking anyhow – that Yukiko would magically go with him to this stupid Valentine's Ball after he presented the paper thin card to her and perhaps got down on one knee?

Honestly, this was stupid.

Fingering the cream-coloured invitation, he whipped a hand through his hand and headed off in the direction in which he had just come.

^_______________________________^

Bleurgh! This is sooo off time *GOMENNASAI!!!*

Got writer's block halfway through the thing and had absolutely no idea what to write. *cowers at rage of reviewers*

Okay, so this obviously isn't the last chapter. I figured that if I add in the rest of it, you guys will have to take a million days, okay, minutes, to read it…soooo….Yah.

Erm…tune in next time for more bits of Melting Ice…? 

PS: In case you guys dunno, The Valentine's special is not separate from the story. In fact, you could label them as chapter 12 and 13 and blah, so on.

© Copyrighted by JadOo Enterprises 2003


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